He Won't Lose Her
by Book-BoyObsessed956439
Summary: Set during The Sun Also Rises. Elena is turned, and remembers Damon's confession before she awakens. She admits to herself and to him she's in love with him, but how will his werewolf bite effect things? Will he survive?
1. I Will Always Choose You

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**WARNING:  
>Spoilers for episode 2x21, <em>The Sun Also Rises<em>, and one of LJ Smiths books (some lines straight from the book). Some foul language. **

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
><strong>**I was watching videos of _The Sun Also Rises_, and I was thinking of the part in the books when _(SPOILER!)_ Elena became a vampire, and how she was in love with Damon. So, my plot bunny attacked me, and it came up with this! :D  
>Enjoy! <strong>

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><p><em>"No!" Stefan screamed as Klaus's elongated fangs sank into Elena's pulse point. She gasped slightly at the sharp slap of pain, but didn't scream, and when she began to lose the strength to stand, Klaus wrapped his arms around her shoulders and waist, pinning her body against his. Her eyes suddenly rolled into the back of her head, and she fell down on the cold rock next to Jenna. At that, she blacked out.<em>

_Elena Gilbert was dead._

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><p>"You come back as a vampire, I'll stake you myself, so don't." It was a distant echo, sounding in the back of Elena's mind as someone carried her somewhere. She felt soft cushion beneath her, like a couch, and soft breeze blowing in through an opened window or door. A hand, soft and gentle, caressed her cheek, as the echo sounded again. "Because I couldn't stand the thought of you hating me forever."<p>

The touch was comforting, and Elena would've sighed contently if she were breathing. She could feel the fear radiating off of Damon, and it felt more familiar now then it had before. A distant memory clicked into her mind.

_"I just need to say something," He began._

_Elena took in a sharp intake of breath when he took a step towards her. "Why do you need to say it with my necklace?"_

_He looked confused for a moment, his lips puckering like his words were trying to fight their way past them, and he blinked hard before saying, "Well...because, what I'm about to say is...probably the most selfish thing I've said in my whole life."_

_She knew where this was headed, and she took a step back, giving Damon a stern look and saying, "Damon, don't go there."_

_"I just need to say it once," He pleaded, closing the distance between them to a mere three inches. She was holding her breath as she looked up at him, stiff as a board. "You just need to hear it."_

_Oh, she did not like where this was going. Last time Damon did this, he had kissed her and snapped her brothers neck in the same thirty seconds. But here and now he didn't reek of whiskey, so maybe it wouldn't end so badly._

_"I love you, Elena," He stated, swallowing hard as her brows furrowed. "And it's because I love you...that I can't be selfish with you, why you can't know this. I don't deserve you."_

_She almost protested, for some reason, but he cut her off. "But my brother does."_

_His hand reached up, his fingertips resting by her ear as his thumb stroked her cheekbone. "God I wish you didn't have to forget this.."_

_She looked up at him, confusion clouding her deep brown eyes, shaking her head only slightly as he finished, "But you do."_

_A tear fell from his ice blue eyes at that, his pupils dilating as he told her he was never there, and that how she got her necklace back was a mystery. _

_One neither of them would ever solve._

She heard something that sounded like water hitting a hot surface, and then felt her face begin to heat up. Soon it began to sting, and she whimpered, her eyes shooting open as she gasped. She saw and smelled smoke, and ended up in the corner where the sun could not reach her. She hissed, her sight darkening until she heard Damon take in a shaky breath. "No.."

She swallowed back the bile that had begun to form in her throat, and barely flinched when Damon appeared directly in front of her. He took her face in his shaking hands, stroking the skin just below her eyes like he had in her memory. "No, no, Elena. I'm so sorry."

She didn't understand at first, looking up at him like he was insane. The memory of his tears had scared her and she reached her own hand out, lying it on his chest as his eyes filled with the liquid again. He winced, like he thought she was about to push him off her, but when she touched him tenderly, it was his turn to look confused.

Jeremy, who Elena had not noticed until then, screamed, "You fucker!"

"Jeremy!" Elena hissed. "Watch your mouth!"

Damon merely cringed, moving a little closer to Elena, almost like he was shielding her from Jeremy's words with his body.

"This is your fault, son of a bitch!" He screamed at the back of Damon's head, growing more and more angry when Damon didn't look back at him. He almost looked hypnotized by Elena's features, which he was, only he wasn't feeling the flutter he usually did. All he felt now was pain and grief.

"Jeremy," Alaric spoke up, his face ridden with misery. "Calm down."

"Fuck calming down," He hissed, suddenly grabbing Damon's arm and shoving him away from Elena. She noticed his wince as Jeremy grabbed his left arm, and felt a snarl rip through her. Before she even knew what she was doing, she had Jeremy pressed against the wall, growling in his face. He struggled beneath her hold until he saw her face. "E-Elena."

"'Lena, stop!" Damon shouted, pulling her off of Jeremy and into his chest.

"Get out of here!" She screamed at Jeremy, accepting Damon's embrace instead of fighting him. "GO!"

He scowled. "Make me."

"Jeremy," Damon growled, having to hold Elena tighter.

"Jer," Alaric said, towing Jeremy out of the room by his arm. "Jer, come on."

"You killed her," He hissed, fighting against Alaric's pull. "Do you hear me? You killed her, motherfucker, you killed her!"

Elena's back arched in a snarl, and Damon pinned her on the couch, her arms above her head and her hips straddled by his long legs. "Easy, 'Lena."

The movement was hostile, but his tone was demure. Soft and comforting, as if he were trying to make her stop crying. She didn't think she'd ever been that furious before in her entire life, and she whimpered, guilt slamming into her like a ton of bricks. "D-Damon, what's going on?"

He bit his lip, moving his hand away from her wrist and touching her cheek again. "What do you remember?"

She thought about that for a moment, trying to ignore the smell of a rotting corpse, scrunching her nose slightly. She couldn't remember what happened before she blacked out, so she started with, "You told me you loved me."

He blinked, his cheeks flushing slightly as his body became rigid above her. He had forgotten that once she became a vampire all the compulsion she ever underwent would be washed away. It happened with Caroline. She had only ever been compelled twice, by him and Elijah, so his memory would shoot right to her conscious mind. He didn't relax until she continued. "Klaus...Klaus killed me, and Jules and Jenna...oh God, Jenna."

Tears began to stream down her face, and he moved off her hips and pulled her into his chest, whispering against her hair, "Shh, shh, it's okay, Elena. It's gonna be okay."

"She's dead, Damon," She whimpered. "She'd dead because of me. It's all because of me."

"No," He whispered. "No, 'Lena, this isn't your fault. Shh.."

She choked on a sob, burying her face in his shirt. "And Jules..Jules was the only one Tyler had. He's alone, now, and Greta's dead, and...oh, God, Damon."

"Greta needed to die," He told her. "She was going to kill Bonnie."

"Bonnie.." She whimpered again, looking up at Damon, her eyes filled with fear and pain. "What about Bonnie? Is Bonnie okay? And Stefan...oh, God. What did Klaus do to Stefan?"

"Stefan is with Bonnie and Elijah, he's okay." He swallowed, stroking her hair softly. "'Lena.."

Suddenly, the truth hit her. "And I'm...I'm a vampire, aren't I?"

His eyes became filled with pain and guilt, and he looked away from her and whispered, "Elena, I'm sorry."

New tears formed, but she didn't cry. She didn't push him away, either. She leaned into him, sniffling miserably as he continuously repeated, "I'm sorry, Elena, I'm so sorry" while he rocked her back and forth slowly like a small child. She sighed, slipping her vervain necklace off and rubbing her fingers over the small burn mark that had began to form while she thought. "I have to drink blood to transition right? Human blood?"

He nodded weakly. "Yes."

"Damon, I don't want this," She admitted weakly. "I don't want to be a vampire."

"I know," He whispered, he voice trembling, "I'm sorry."

Not sure why she did it, she took Damon's hand in hers and just studied it, tracing soft patterns on his palm absentmindedly. He nuzzled her hair, seeming to relax at her touch, swallowing hard when he heard footsteps outside.

"How is she?" Stefan asked, seeming to think Elena was sleeping from the way Damon was holding her. He reached out to grab her arm and she hissed at him. He jerked back, startled that she was awake, and after glaring at him for a good ten seconds, she went back to playing with Damon's hand. He sighed, but didn't look at his surely infuriated younger brother.

"You're in transition," He whispered, astounded by her reaction to him. He snarled at Damon, "How could you be the one to take that choice away from her?"

"Hypocrite," Elena muttered, not moving away from Damon.

"What?" Stefan said quietly.

She didn't respond.

"Where's Bonnie?" Damon asked in monotone. "We need a ring for her. Or something."

"You...you are so..." Stefan groaned, not finishing his insult, as he jogged outside. "Bonnie!"

"I don't have anything she could put a spell on," Elena told Damon.

He pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to her, smiling at the adoring look in her eyes as she admired it. The black pendant stone carved into a heart, a white line striking through the center of it like a bolt of lightning in a pitch black storm, also making the heart looked damaged and battered, but still flawless. "It was my mothers."

She glanced at him. "Damon, I can't.."

"It's yours now," He said, pushing it back into her hand. "I want you to have it."

"But your mom.." Elena bit her lip. "Does Stefan know you have this?"

"He was Daddy's Little Girl," He said, and Elena giggled. "He probably won't even recognize it."

She sighed but nodded. "Okay.." She scowled then. "God, what is that smell?"

He sniffed and shrugged. "Someone's dead body?"

"It's John," Bonnie snarled as she walked in the room. "John is dead. I put a spell on him before we came to save you. It was supposed to stop you from turning into a vampire."

"She's not one yet," Damon hissed. "She doesn't have to turn."

"What?" Elena looked up at Damon. "What do you mean?"

"You can reject the change. Don't drink blood, don't turn." He touched her hair. "You'll...you'll die, though."

"No," Bonnie said.

"That's not your decision to make, Damon!" Stefan snarled.

"He's not making me do anything, Stefan!" Elena hissed, glaring at Stefan and Bonnie over her shoulder. "Jeez."

"Are you okay?" Bonnie asked.

"All her senses are heightened," Stefan told her. "It will only be intensified if she drinks human blood. She is agitated even easier now."

"What am I to you two? Your fucking science experiment?" She snarled, moving closer to Damon like she was a frightened cat. "A plus!"

In spite of himself, Damon chuckled. Elena thought back on it, and realized that's the first time she'd ever heard him laugh.

Something in her stomach fluttered, and she leaned up and kissed the base of Damon's throat. He shivered, nearly melting into her before his brows furrowed. She just lain her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat - a bit faster than before - as she went back to tracing patterns on his palm.

"Elena?"

She sighed and looked over her shoulder again, cocking her brow. "You are?"

Damon looked down at her. "That's Alaric, you remember him, right?"

"Oh," She said. "Sorry."

"You know who everyone is, right?" Damon asked, tilting her face up. "You're not shutting down on me, are you?"

"Of course not." She kissed his cheek, smiling at his confused look. "What?"

"Uh..." He swallowed. "Okay, so who is that?"

She looked where he pointed, and shrugged indifferently, looking down at his hand before answering. "Stefan, your brother."

"And her?" He asked.

"Bonnie." She yawned, kissing his palm.

He was enjoying her lips on him immensely. "And what about me? Do you know who I am?"

She looked up at him and giggled like he was joking. "Of course I do. You're Damon, and I love you."

His breath hitched. "'Lena.."

"I remember," She whispered. "I love you, too. I remember what you said, I . . . I need you."

The vampirism had amped up her courage and honesty as well, and Damon still seemed shocked about it. Stefan looked like he was about to gag, or cry, but Elena didn't care. She handed Bonnie the necklace. "Please?"

She just nodded, looking dumbstruck as she began to murmur.

"Elena," Stefan began.

She groaned and Stefan shut up then.

"You need blood," Damon said.

"She can have mine," Alaric said quietly.

"She could kill you," Stefan said.

"I will not!" Elena protested.

He just shrugged. "Your point?"

If Elena had been in her right state of mind, she would've hugged Alaric for saying such a thing. He was that heartbroken over Jenna's death he didn't care if Elena accidentally drained him.

"Just take a little," Damon whispered, his eyes still wide from her earlier confession. "Don't hurt him."

"I won't," She whispered back, offering Alaric a timid smile before biting into his wrist. The blood sent her reeling, and she moaned softly, sucking a little harder. After a moment, she felt Damon's hand on the back of her neck, and pulled back, wiping her mouth and blushing like she just got caught doing something humiliating.

"You okay?" Stefan asked Alaric, finding it hard to look at Elena right now.

"Yeah," He said, wiping his wrist on his pant leg.

"Witch," Damon hissed. "Give me that."

Bonnie scowled but handed Damon the necklace, and Elena grinned as he clipped it around her throat. "I really do love you, ya know."

An uncertain, vulnerable look crossed Damon's face, and he let slip, "Really..?"

"Of course," She said, leaning up and nuzzling his jaw.

"I'm gonna...go take care of John's body," Stefan said, taking a step back and out the door, unable to watch this.

"I love you, too," Damon said, a trusting smile crossing his lips. And then she leaned up and did the thing he'd been praying she'd do for months; she kissed him. Soft and sweet.

She was his.

Always had been.

Always would be.

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><p><strong>I seriously need to see some Delena on this show, I just needed this happy-sappy ending. haha. Hope y'all enjoyed! :D <strong>**Please review! Please! They make me SO happy!  
>(I might continue this, depending on if anyone likes it. heehee) <strong>

**Just press this little button, right below this text, to make my day! =] **


	2. Tyler Lockwood Bit Me

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

_**RenRowselltrue:** Of course I don't mind! :D Thank you! :D  
>And I agree, I wish they had a little more Delena - hence why I adore the books so much!<em>

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
><strong>**Okay, so, I got so many requests for a sequel I gotta do one! So, here you go, guys! :D**

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><p>Damon moaned into the kiss, wrapping his good arm around Elena's waist to pull her closer. He shivered as she straddled his thighs, pinning him against the couch and deepening the kiss. She wasn't giving him any time to breathe and when she finally pilled away he was panting beneath her, and her lips on his throat weren't helping at all. He moaned again and leaned his head back, feeling her hands exploring the plains of his chest. She grabbed his wrists gently, pinning them above his head as she sucked on the soft skin of his collarbone, but froze when she heard him whimper. "Damon?"<p>

He looked up at her, his wince fading as her hand fell from his forearm. "I'm okay. Sorry."

"What's wrong?" She asked, putting her weight on his thighs as she looked at him with concerned eyes.

"Erm.." Bonnie tried to get someone's attention.

Elena ignored her, prodding with, "Damon?" when he didn't respond.

"It's nothing, okay?" He said, his voice soft as he touched her cheek. He didn't want her to know about his werewolf bite. Not now. Not after she lost John, and Jenna. And she watched Jules be killed and Stefan be twisted into a knot. She didn't need another grave to mourn. Not yet. "Really, I'm fine."

She sighed but nodded, the trust in her eyes stabbing him like a knife. "Okay."

Alaric said, "I'm gonna go, uh, help Stefan with John."

"John's dead too," Elena said as Alaric left, sighing and shaking her head. She was crestfallen.

"Yeah." Damon nodded, his hand still resting on her cheek. He shivered when she kissed his palm, and she grinned weakly. She loved how easily she could make him shiver.

"Can we go home?" She asked. "I want to get out of here."

He nodded. "Sure."

"Where's Jeremy?" Elena asked Bonnie.

"Downstairs, cooling off," She said. "I'll get him and we'll get out of here. 'Kay?"

"Okay." Elena smiled, turning back to Damon as Bonnie left the room. "C'mon."

He stood up, and was smiling at her until dark spots started dancing in his vision and he stumbled, pressing his hand to his his forehead. He heard Elena's voice faintly, saying his name worriedly, her hands on him as she steadied him. He felt like he was being choked, and kneeled over slightly, feeling Elena pull him close to her as they were collapsing back on the couch. "Damon? Damon, easy. Easy."

He coughed hard, his vision foggy as his eyes shot everywhere, just looking for something to focus on. And then it was over. His head was in Elena's lap, and the only thing reminding him of his little problem was his throbbing forearm.

"Damon, what happened?" Elena asked, looking down at him with panic.

"I-" He started.

"Elena?" Stefan came in, cutting off Damon's attempt to explain. Only then did she remember she screamed his name out.

She snarled. "What, Stefan?"

He flinched. "I heard you scream.." He cut off, looking down at his brother. "Damon? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," He said, trying to sit up, but Elena wouldn't let him. He groaned, but didn't fight her much.

"Baby," She said, running her fingers through his soft hair. "What's wrong?"

He sighed. "Let me up."

She did.

He pulled his jacket off tentatively, slowly pulling the leather off of his wound, and Elena winced, reaching out and brushing her fingertips over the scar with the lightest of touches. "What happened?"

"Playing nurse to the fucking son of a bitch murderer?" Jeremy hissed, coming back in with his chest blown out like he thought he could do something.

"Jeremy, fuck off," Elena growled.

Bonnie touched Jeremy's back, giving him a warning look, her dark eyes whispering _Take a step back, she's lethal when it comes to him now._

"Anyhow," Damon said, getting annoyed by the constant interruptions, especially when the punk little kid just came in to run his mouth. "Tyler Lockwood bit me."

Elena's face fell, and she took Damon's arm in her hands, studying the wound with tears in her eyes. "No," She said, shaking her head as she ran her fingertips over the soft tears in Damon's skin. "No. We'll fix this. We'll find a cure."

"There is no cure," He said softly, just watching her with pained eyes.

"Then why did you let me turn?" She asked, finally looking up at him. "I thought you'd be with me."

He felt tears pricking his own eyes at the lost, frightened way her voice trembled and cracked, and he kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry."

"I won't let you die," She said stubbornly, the determination in her eyes vicious. "I won't."

"'Lena," He started quietly, his arm still in her hand.

"No!" She yelled, her grip tightening on his hand enough to make him hiss in pain, which she released quickly, kissing the raging red skin. "Sorry."

"It's okay."

"Damon, you're not dying." Her eyes were desperate, pleading with him to just listen and not prepare her for the worst. "You can't die on me. You can't just leave me."

"I don't want to, 'Lena." Fear flashed in his eyes for a moment, and she kissed him softly, comfortingly, and he melted into her.

Stefan tried again to get someone's attention. "'Lena?"

She growled against Damon's lips, but pulled away and looked at him, exasperated by his stubbornness. "What?"

"Can I talk to you?" He asked. "Outside? Alone?"

She grumbled and stood up, kissing Damon's forehead before pushing ahead of Stefan and outside. "What?"

"Did I do something wrong?" He asked.

"Nah." She shrugged. "Do we have to do this now? I'm kind of pre-occupied."

He sighed and grabbed her, crushing his lips against hers in a kiss so full of desperation she hardly responded. She just stood there, motionless, her lips pressed in a line as if he were still speaking several feet away from her. And when he pulled away, she suppressed an eye roll. "Please, Elena."

"One," She said, "'Lena is meant for Damon, and Damon alone, to call me. And two." She picked up her hand, slamming her palm across Stefan's face, hard enough to make him take a step back. "Don't ever do that again."

He swallowed, covering his stinging cheek with his hand.

"Now, if you have nothing to say to me about Damon getting cured, I have nothing I want to say to you." She tried to walk past him, and he gripped her arm. She closed her eyes in boredom and sighed. "Yes, Stefan?"

"Don't be Katherine," He pleaded. "Please."

"I'm not Katherine," She said, her eyes still closed as she waited for him to say something useful about Damon, or drop her arm. "I'm not with both of you." She looked at him then. "I've made my choice, Stefan. _Accept_ it."

He winced, dropping his hand. "I'll, uh, I'll go find something. Me and Bonnie...He can't die."

"Finally!" She said. "We agree."

"Bonnie," Stefan called, ignoring Elena's comment as she waltzed back over to Damon. "C'mon, I need your help."

Elena took both of Damon's hands in hers as Bonnie went to Stefan's aid. "Let's go, okay?"

He just nodded, standing up slower this time.

She helped him get outside, and into the car that was parked there. She gave John's corpse a sad glance before letting Damon get in the backseat. She looked at Alaric. "Will you drive?"

"Sure," He said.

"Jeremy." She gestured to the front passenger seat.

"Elena, if you want me to get in that car, he's gotta go," He said, crossing his arms.

"Oh, would you get your head out of your ass?" She hissed. She'd never spoken to anyone like that before, so it took Jeremy aback a bit. "It's not all about you. Now get in the damn car or I will tie you in a knot and stick you in the trunk. And if you say another word about Damon, I will separate your brain from your skull and give you one that operates. Does that compute for you?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Don't talk to me like I'm a child."

She sighed, looking calm and exasperated, but then she was in front of him slapping him so hard he was sent back three feet, airborne, slamming into the wall of the house.

"Sis!" He groaned.

"Will you shut up, now?" She asked, monotone. "I will put you in the trunk, so help me."

He sighed and stood up, wobbling only slightly. "Fine, but I don't have to like him."

"Just don't tell me about it," She hissed, getting in the backseat with Damon as Jeremy sluggishly walked to the front. She gripped Damon's shoulders, forcing him to lie down on the flat leather of the backseat, and stroked his hair. When he looked up at her with confusion in his gaze, she grinned. "You look tired."

He nodded slightly, turning on his back and looking up at her. "I love you."

"I love you, too," She said, leaning down and kissing his forehead, letting her lips linger on his skin for a moment, smiling when his eyes closed at the contact. She stroked his cheek as he slipped into unconsciousness, and asked Alaric to take a road with the least bumps to not jostle him. She continued to stroke his face as the ride continued, and eventually he turned so his back was facing the windshield. She moved her hand and eyes down to his arm, which he was currently lying on, and sighed, stroking the skin softly. In his sleep, he whimpered, and she leaned down and kissed his temple, feeling him instantly relax at her touch.

"It will be okay," She whispered in his ear. "You'll be okay. I promise."

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><p><strong>Okay, so, again, I'm calling this complete because I'm not sure if I wanna keep going! I know where it will be going, and all that, but I'm not sure if anyone wants to read MORE. So! If you wish to make my day-and to read the next chapter-...<strong>

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_**PLEASE REVIEW! **_**:D**


	3. Vampires Can't Procreate

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**WARNING:  
><strong>_Intense Fluffitude. ;) Damon in pain. :'( Sexual Content._

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
><strong>_Still leaving this as "Complete", because it could end here unless someone wants a chapter four! I do have an idea, so just let me know! =]  
>To All My Reviewers: I love you guys! <em>

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><p>"Damon?" Elena whispered, shaking the vampires shoulder softly. "Damon, wake up. We're home."<p>

He groaned, trying to hide his face and she giggled. He whined, "'Lena.."

She giggled again, moving her leg out from under his head sharply. He grunted, glaring up at her halfheartedly as she continued to snicker. Jeremy, still steaming, got out of the car, whereas Alaric got out to give them a moment and because he felt awkward.

"'Lena please," Damon complained, pouting. "Why must you torture me?"

"You're easy?" She offered, giggling and standing up, her back pressing against the roof of the car, when he tried to lie his head back down again. He growled in agitation and rolled onto his stomach, hiding his face in his forearms and grumbling something. Still snickering, she straddled his thighs, leaning pressure on his back pockets with her hips and massaging his shoulders. He gasped at the pressure, moaning softly as her hands caressed his back, and she reveled in every sound she got out of him. Her hands slipped up his shirt, and she leaned down, applying more pressure to his backside as she kissed the soft skin of his back, feeling him shiver beneath her.

"'Lena.." He moaned her name out, his eyes closed, completely trusting. He shivered and moaned again when her lips caressed the back of his neck, _agonizingly_ slow. She was driving him insane, she could tell by the way his hand clutched the seat beneath him.

"I have a question," She purred against his ear, and he trembled. He moaned in response, and she continued, "Earlier, on the couch, I touched you here -" her hand slipped underneath him, caressing his ribs, "-and you squirmed."

"'Lena," He began, "I will kill you."

"No you won't." She ground her hips into him, and he moaned. "But does that mean I'm right?"

"Elena.." He was tense beneath her. "I am not kidding, don't."

"Since when have I listened to your rules?" She asked, pulling back and flipping him over onto his back.

"Elena!" He tried to grab her wrists before her hands got to him and failed miserably, bursting out in laughter as she tickled ribcage. His laugh was contagious, and Elena giggled, slipping her hands up his shirt to make it harder for him to get her off him. He bucked his hips up, trying to throw her off him, but she just laughed, leaning down and getting in his face, nudging her nose against his as he struggled and laughed under her.

"Mercy!" He cried out, and when she still didn't let up he continued again, "Elena! Please!"

She giggled and stopped, holding her hands up in mock surrender. He was panting from laughing so hard, and she laid her hands on his shoulders. "So the big, bad Damon Salvatore is ticklish, hmm?"

"Stop talking," He begged, his tone reminding her how exhausted he had been a few minutes ago as he reached his hand up and pulled her down to him. "Just kiss me. Please."

She smiled, cupping his cheek and kissing him passionately. He rested his hands on her waist, and, mid-kiss, he groaned in pain, his back arching in agony as he clutched his arm. Elena pulled back, seeing the tears forming in his eyes at the intense torment, and said, "Easy, Damon."

He moaned, half way curling in on himself. "E-Elena.."

His whimper broke her heart, and she covered his hand with her own. "Damon, shh... Shh.. you're okay."

He jerked, groaning as he bit back a scream, and then, just like that, it was over, and he was panting under Elena again, looking up at her with fear in his eyes as he admitted, "I'm scared, 'Lena.."

"I know." She kissed his forehead, sympathy in her deep brown eyes as she stroked his cheek.

"I just got you," He whimpered. "I don't want to die, Elena. I don't want to lose this. Us."

"You won't. We'll find something," She reassured, kissing the few stray tears that had slipped from his icy gaze. He closed his eyes, drawing in a couple shaky breaths and entangling his fingers in Elena's hair as she rested her forehead against his.

"Come on," She said softly. "Let's get you inside. You need to sleep."

It was a struggle getting him outside after the jolt of pain, and she was carrying a lot of his weight as they stumbled through the doorway. She grabbed his hand, and shot them both upstairs to avoid Jeremy and Alaric's gazes and questions. Damon let her lie him back on the bed, sighing softly as she vanished. When she returned, she had two of his black teeshirts in her hand, and he cocked his brow. "What are you up to?"

She pressed his hip down softly, so he lied on his back as she sat on his hips. His breath hitched softly, trying to watch her face and not her hands as they popped the buttons on his shirt and traveled over his chest. He leaned his head back into the pillow, arching into her touch and shivering when her lips followed her fingertips. She was gentle, and sweet with him, treating his body as if it were fragile enough to shatter under too hard of a touch. No one, repeat, _no one_ had ever treated him like this. No one had ever made him feel safe like this. It was always Fuck-N-Go for him, and he never noticed he minded missing out on being treated like this until now. He never noticed he still liked feeling . . . _human_.

Even when he was human, Katherine was rough with him. She'd scratch him, bite him, pin him down and screw him whenever she felt like it, and eventually it felt normal. That was his normal, that what he thought was normal. The idea of someone trying to make him feel good was insane. Pain was his normal. And now that Elena was doing this to him, he realized he hated being hurt all the time.

"How are you doing, baby?" She asked, her breath gliding over his stomach as she spoke.

"Perfect," He moaned quietly, reaching out for Elena's hand, smiling softly when she took it in hers and kissed his palm.

He felt her hand on the button of his jeans, gently pulling the button free as she lowered his zipper, her hand sliding beneath the waistband and massaging his hipbone, getting a low moan from him. Soon enough, his jeans were taken from his body and she was straddling him again. His hands slipped up her shirt, and she tugged it over her head, grinning at him when he stared and swallowed hard. She leaned down, brushing her lips against his as his hands lain on her hips. He groaned softly, and she looked down at him to see if he was okay. He flexed his arm and looked up at her shyly. "Sorry.."

"Don't be," She said, her hand snaking around behind him and pulling his head back as she kisses along his throat. He felt vulnerable, exposed, and he _loved_ it.

"Elena.." He moaned, his hand teasing at the clip of her bra. She grabbed his hand, pinning both his arms above his head softly and looking at him with so much love it hurt. "Don't move."

He must've looked confused because she grinned and added. "Just let me take care of you, okay?"

He just nodded, leaving his arms where she placed them as she kissed down his neck. He tilted his head back, his stomach brushing against hers as he arched up, begging her not to stop, and begging his own body not to be taken over by pain right now.

He vaguely noticed her jeans join his somewhere on the floor, her panties and his boxer shorts lying on the edge of the bed with the shirts she brought earlier. All he really felt, and wanted to feel, was her..pressing against him as she held his wrists gently. She didn't have him pinned to the bed, but she did have his hands, their fingers tangled as they let their blissful highs take over, both of them panting at the now fading ecstasy. After forever, which seemed like no time at all to Damon, she backed away and snatched the articles of clothing off the end of the bed. She slipped into his black teeshirt and pulled her panties up, offering Damon his.

"I'm comfortable," He said wittily.

She narrowed her eyes and puckered her lips. "Mister Salvatore."

"Miss Gilbert," He retorted playfully. "I'm perfectly comfortable with my body, sorry."

"Does the wittle tickl-wish vampiwe need his giwlfwiend to dwess him too? A-boo!" She smirked as he scowled, leaning down and attacking his throat as she tickled his sides again.

"Okay!" He shouted through his laughs. "Okay, okay, I give! Mercy!"

She snickered and hopped off of him, watching as he pulled his boxers on and chucked his teeshirt into the bathroom. "That is all you get."

"Deal," She giggled, lying her head on his chest when he laid back down. He turned, pulling her body against his as he spooned her, and she snuggled back into him. "I love you."

"I love you, too." He kissed the back of her neck, and she shivered.

After listening to his ragged, now pained breathing, for a few minutes, she took his hand in hers. Playing with it, studying it. She kissed it, massaged it, and traced patterns on it until she felt him bury his face in her neck, and kept it up a little longer for her own entertainment after his breathing evened out.

He would be okay. He had to be.


	4. I Can't Lose You

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
><strong>_NO LONGER A ONE-SHOT!  
>I mean, seriously, read this through and tell me you would not hunt me down and kill me if I left you here. :P <em>

* * *

><p>Damon's condition worsened faster and faster as the days went by. He had a hard time walking now. He rarely slept, because he would be awoke by the feeling of being impaled by twenty stakes and scream himself into consciousness. Elena, not needing to sleep much anymore with her newfound vampirism, would hold him when that did happen, whisper soft assurances that he was safe, he was okay, until he stopped crying out. He told her how it felt, one day, after she asked. Told her how it felt like everything inside of him had been twisted around, raked over with vervain, and how his bones and muscles strained against the venom from Tyler's bite. Elena had never hated Tyler more than she did now.<p>

She was stroking Damon's cheek now, watching as he got some sleep, his chest rising and falling with a slight tremor. It hurt him to breathe, and listening to how strangled his voice had become broke her heart.

Jeremy wasn't so angry with him anymore, and Elena and he were getting along better now that he saw how much she cared about Damon. He would come in everyday, per Elena's request, and drop off blood for them both and tell her if Stefan or Bonnie had made any move to contact her. Her heart fell every day when the answer was _No_. And today, as Jeremy walked in and left three blood bags on the nightstand, Elena snapped.

"What do you mean _no_?" She hissed as quietly as possible as to not wake Damon. "He's growing weaker by the second and they haven't even wasted a minute to call? What are they doing, damn it?"

"Elena, calm down," Jeremy said soothingly. "He'll be okay."

"He could die, Jeremy!" She whimpered, her voice breaking. "Every time he falls asleep, there is a chance he won't wake up. There is a chance this is gonna kill him, and _his brother_ and _my best friend_ aren't even _trying_ to contact us!"

"Elena.." He sighed as Damon shifted, lying his head on Elena's thigh, clinging to her like she was the only thing keeping him on the planet.

Her face contorted in pain at the sight. "I can't lose you, Damon."

He sighed in response, still sleeping soundly. It was cute, that he appeared to still be listening to her in his unconsciousness.

"Jer!" Caroline called from downstairs. "Jer, get down here!"

"I'll be back," He said quietly, turning and walking out of the room.

Elena moved her hand back and forth across Damon's shoulder blades, and just started to get control of herself as his breath hitched.

_Here we go._

"Damon," She said softly. "Easy."

He groaned, his eyes squeezing shut and his grip on Elena's thigh tightening, hard enough that if she were human her leg would've snapped at the pressure. His back arched as he curled in on himself, choking back a scream. "El-Elena, please."

"Shh," She whispered against his ear, stroking his back and side softly, comfortingly. "Shh, it's okay, Damon. It's okay."

He whimpered, clinging to her as she moved closer to him, holding him against her. He buried his face in her neck, gripping her shoulders, screaming out, "Elena!" as another wave of pain took him over.

"Damon." She was crying now, forcing him on his back and straddling him to keep him still. She didn't take her face away from his, there cheeks brushing as he tried desperately to hide the agony in his eyes from her. "Damon, shh. Relax, you're okay."

"'Lena, please.." He sobbed, lying back and looking up at her with pleading, frightened eyes. "Please, make it stop. I-I can't do this.."

"Don't say that," She begged, taking his face in her hands, his eyes never leaving hers as his palms rested on her forearms. "Please, you've gotta stay with me."

"Elena.." He coughed then, fighting his way out of Elena's grasp and leaning over, covering his mouth with his hand as he choked and hacked, his shoulders jerking. She stayed close to him, kissing the back of his neck and rubbing his shoulders as he finally collapsed on the bed, his lips and hand covered in his own blood.

"I-I'm sorry," He choked out, breathing harshly as he trembled. His skin was deathly hot, yet he shivered.

"Don't be," She said, kissing his bare back and running her hands up and down his side in a desperate attempt to still his tremors. He hid his face in his hands, and she pulled the sheets up to cover him better. She saw sweat on his forehead, and goosebumps on his arms, yet the room was perfectly comfortable, lingering somewhere at about seventy five degrees. She stood up, the floor creaking under her bare feet, and saw his hands fall from his face to watch what she was doing. His cheeks now glimmered with tears, and sympathy and heartache shook Elena to the core.

She opened the cupboard in the bathroom, pulling out a hand towel and running it under ice cold water. She rung it out, shaking her hands free of dew before taking the damp towel back out to where Damon was, still watching her through the doorway. Starting on his face, she wiped the towel over his cheekbones and forehead as gently as she could, and she saw how helpless he felt just by looking in his eyes. She shook her head, not saying anything about it because they both knew he _was_ helpless and vulnerable right now, and it wasn't changing anytime soon no matter how much both of them hated it. She kissed his now damp skin, soft and loving open mouthed kisses, showered all over his gorgeous face. His eyes closed and he shivered again as the cold towel pressed against his chest and collarbone, and a low, barely audible whimper escaped his lips.

She wasn't meant to hear it, but she did. "Damon, come on," She whispered, pulling him up gently. His hand shot between his ribs, wincing in pain, and she wrapped her arm around him. Pulling him up and helping him limp to the bathroom, she turned the water on hot, as he was still shaking. She pulled off the teeshirt she was wearing and her panties, pushing his boxers down and tossing them into the pile. He moaned softly as the warmth hit him, but his knees gave out on him and he had to sit down. Elena didn't mind, she just sat down with him, running the cloth along his skin soothingly and kissing his neck.

"You don't have to do this," He croaked, his hand sliding up her slick back and pulling her closer.

"Do what?" She asked, ignoring the strain in his voice so she didn't start crying again, kissing his ear softly and running the towel down his arm.

He shivered, and she knew it wasn't from the cold this time. "This." He caught her wrist weakly, barely able to stop her movements. "Take care of me like I'm some bird with a broken wing you found in the backyard."

"Nah," She joked, "you wouldn't sleep in twigs."

He smiled slightly. "I'm serious, 'Lena. Why don't you just tell me goodbye? Get it over with."

"Because I refuse to let you die," She said stubbornly, gently taking her hand from his and moving it down his body again. "You are not allowed."

He snorted. "Then I'm gonna break your rules.."

"No," She said, pressing her finger to his lips. "No. You will listen to that one rule, okay?"

He sighed. "'Lena.."

"Damon," She said when he paused.

"If I die-" It was his turn to press a finger to her lips at that. "-Let me finish. If I die..will you hate me for it?"

"No," She said. "One, I could never hate you. And two, I will be following you."

He flinched, like her words hurt. "'Lena, no.."

"Don't argue with me on this," She said, persistant as ever. "It'll be a waste of your breath, and right now we can't be wasting that."

"Elena, please." His eyes were haunted.

She pressed her lips to his, silencing him instantly. He whimpered in protest, trying to change her mind on this, but eventually he melted into the kiss, knowing it was hopeless.

After the water had gone cool, she dragged Damon to his feet and disappeared, reappearing wearing a pair of jeans and a black v-neck tank, handing Damon a clean teeshirt and boxers. He didn't argue with her, just slid them on and stumbled slightly. She caught his arm and he hissed, his hand shooting up to defend his arm. She moved her hand, looking down at his arm, the bruising red skin covering his pulsing veins thinly. It had spread down to his wrist and up his bicep, and she winced. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," He whispered, using his good arm to pull Elena close. He knew she was trying to be strong for him, but he missed holding her. He missed comforting her. She melted into him, burying her face in his chest and breathing him in. Damon growled when Jeremy walked in, ruining their moment.

"Elena?" He said, oblivious to Damon's anger.

"What, Jeremy?" She asked, her voice muffled by Damon's shirt.

"Stefan's here-"

"What!" She pulled out of Damon's embrace by an inch, looking at Jeremy.

"Him and Bonnie are back, they need to talk to you..it's important."

Damon swallowed.

"I'll be there in a minute, Jer," She said, turning to look up at Damon. She pulled her vampire toward the bed, waiting for him to lie on his side before kissing his forehead. He closed his eyes at the contact, completely trusting, and whispered, "Do you have to go?"

She smiled, stroking his cheek. "I'll be back before you know it."

"But I already know it," He stated, and she giggled.

"I love you," She whispered, brushing her lips against his.

He smiled against her lips, waiting until she pulled back to whisper, "I love you, too."

She grinned, pulling back and walking around the bed, snatching the blood bag Jeremy left for her before jogging downstairs, her eyes narrowing when she saw Stefan. "Do they not have cell phone service in Hell?"

Damon turned over at the squish sound, wondering if Elena just broke something, his eyes widening when he saw the blood bag, the smell hitting him harshly.

"I'm sorry," Stefan said. "We might've found a cure, though."

"Spit it out, then," She hissed.

Damon trembled, moving closer and snagging the bag off the nightstand. He whimpered; he shouldn't do this without Elena there. What if something happened? But...

"Supposedly, if his 'soulmate' sacrifices themselves for him, he'll live," Bonnie said softly.

"His 'soulmate'?" She asked, annoyance brimming to the surface. "Some God Mumbo Jumbo? You come here and give me something about the otherworld and souls? What the fuck?"

"Elena, there's a way we can figure this out," Stefan said. "It's the only lead we've got."

His hands shook, one of his nails piercing the thin plastic. His heart was pounding out of his chest as the smell became over powering. Too soon...

"Fine, who's his soulmate?" Elena hissed.

"Emily put a curse on this." Bonnie held out a small circle, the outside covered in fake rhinestones.

"Your old compact?" Elena asked, sipping the blood out of the baggie.

She nodded. "Whoever shows up in the mirror will supposedly be able to save Damon."

...his lips were on the plastic, the veins in his arm making him cry out in pain as the beat a mile a minute in unison with the veins pulsing under his eyes. His vision darkened and...

Bonnie opened the little mirror, looking at it and seeing nothing but the background behind her. She sighed, more than a little grateful, and handed it to Caroline, who scowled and looked, seeing nothing, not even Jeremy who was behind her. "Creepy," She whispered.

Elena heard Damon's breathing speed up. "Give me that."

...he panted, both bags now clear and empty of any blood whatsoever. He groaned, gripping the sheets and trying to get control of himself. It wasn't working, he was seeing things now. Hearing people he hadn't heard in years...

_"Because all I have is disappointment."_  
><em>"It was always Stefan."<em>  
><em>"Please let me go."<em>  
><em>"You did this, this is your fault!"<em>

He screamed, and Elena flinched, assuming he was having another attack of pain. Caroline passed her the compact, and Elena looked at herself, shaking her head. "I look totally normal."

"You can see yourself?" Stefan asked, pain flashing through his eyes.

"Yeah," She said, "but I don't look any different."

"You don't have to look different," Bonnie said. "It's you."

...his dad, Katherine, people he'd killed, Elena..images shooting past him as he tried to hide his face. Elena, where are you? He whimpered, unable to lie down anymore, and crouched by the window...

"Me?" Elena said. "My death could save his life?"

Bonnie nodded grimly.

"No," Jeremy said. "Let him die, you can't.."

"Jeremy," Elena said softly. "If he dies, I'll die anyway."

"What?"

"I can't live without him, Jer," She said. "I'm sorry."

"You'd just leave me?" He asked, having every right to be selfish.

"Alaric would be with you," She said. "I won't live without him Jer, that's not negotiable." She winced as Damon cried out again. "I have to go check on him, I'll be back."

She jogged upstairs, leaving everyone crestfallen with her decision, and heard a crash.

"Damon?" She said, moving into his room. She checked the bathroom quickly, her brows furrowing. She was about to call his name again when she looked at the bed, seeing the two empty bags there, and her eyes travelled to the broken window.

"Oh, God," She said, jogging to the window. "Damon!"


	5. Go Ahead, Run

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
>Hello all you epic people who clicked on this story. I almost didn't publish this chapter because I hadn't gotten any response to it, but three people came and reviewed (*hug!*) so I'm publishing this. Please please PLEASE leave a review, they make me so happy!<br>Enjoy! **

* * *

><p>Elena zoomed down the stairs, panic flooding her eyes. "He's gone."<p>

"What do you mean he's gone?" Stefan asked.

"What?" Caroline looked at Elena, eyes widening.

"He left," Elena said. "He got ahold of the blood in the room, he must've lost it."

Elena zoomed out the door then, leaving the group to do as they pleased. Stefan and Caroline followed, hot on her heals.

Damon snarled, throwing the third person he'd drained to the side. His humanity switch had flipped off all on it's own, and he was starving. He saw a couple walking to their car, and smirked wickedly. They were far to easy. Damon grabbed the boy around the throat, throwing him back and snatching the girl, pulling her head back and draining her in a quick gulp. She fell limp to the ground, and Damon felt the guy grab at him.

"Bad move, kid," He slurred, pinning the teenager against the car they had been getting in, moving over him and covering his mouth as he tried to scream, tearing his throat open and sucking the sweet liquid out of him until he stopped struggling.

Elena found him quickly, just following the smell of blood and the trail of bodies. "Damon!"

He turned toward the voice, snarling and crouching over at the approaching threat. She looked familiar, but he couldn't put a name to her.

"Damon, stop!"

He knew that was Stefan, and that just made him more scared. He felt cornered, and when he finally put a name to the girl in front of him, it was the wrong one. "Katherine."

"Damon, it's me," Elena whispered, hurt. "It's me, E-"

A snarl cut her off. "Stay away from me."

"Damon," Stefan hissed, his position challenging.

Elena kicked him in the knee, trying to get it through to him that was not how to handle this, but he ignored her.

"Brother," Damon purred, taking a step back.

"Don't," Stefan growled, taking two steps toward him.

Caroline said, "Stefan.."

Damon froze, his head tilting slightly as a new heartbeat came to his mind. He grinned wickedly, turning to see the approaching human. She was female, too wrapped up in the music blasting from her iPod to notice what she was walking into. Her hips swayed seductively, and Damon was behind her in a second, grabbing the loops of her jeans and pulling her against him.

"Hey-" She started, her headphones falling off as Damon covered her mouth, and she screamed into his palm.

Elena charged him, wrapping her arm around his neck with some trouble due to his height. He snarled, turning on Elena, and she grabbed his forearms in defense mode. He shrieked, trying to pull his arm away from her, but she was stronger with the venom leveling them. His switch turned back on, and his eyes went scared, cowering away from Elena as Stefan compelled the girl that nothing happened and to go back the way she came. He still didn't know who she was. "Katherine, please."

"It's me," She said, the tears distracting her from the death grip on his wound. "It's Elena, Damon. It's 'Lena."

He managed to get his good arm free, covering her hand with his in a desperate attempt to get her to let him go, not understanding her words. She gasped and dropped his arm, seeing his blood leak over onto her fingers as he fell to his knees, crying and hiding his face.

"What the fuck, Damon?" Stefan yelled, seemingly oblivious to his brother's shaking shoulders.

Elena snarled, not seeing Damon look up. He cowered back further, almost crawling away from 'Katherine' and his brother. Stefan thought he was trying to get away, and trampled him, straddling his hips and pinning his arms roughly above his head, snarling in his face. Damon cried out, trying to get away from his brother's vice grip on his arm. "Please!"

"Stefan!" Elena screamed, noticing how hard her was holding his forearm.

"P-please no," Damon whimpered, the faraway look in his eyes letting Elena know he wasn't all there. "Please! It hurts."

Stefan wouldn't let up.

Caroline grabbed Stefan's shoulders, shoving him back from the front, knowing he wasn't expecting her. Damon squeezed his eyes shut and screamed as Stefan's nails dug into his arm, clutching it to his chest and turning on his side. While Caroline made Stefan calm down, Elena rushed Damon's writhing body. "Damon, Damon, it's okay. Easy."

"Please," He whimpered repeatedly, his mind somewhere else completely.

~oOo~

_Katherine smirked, approaching Damon wickedly and running her fingertips over his chest, pressing him against the wall with barely any effort. _

_"What are you?" He whispered, unable to get much else out as fear took him over._

_She didn't answer. "If you can outrun me, I'll leave you alone. Go ahead, run."_

_Damon, unaware of her inhuman speed, took off, trying to get to the house, Stefan, his father, someone. He was scared, and didn't know what she wanted, but he knew it wasn't good._

_He looked back to see if she was following, and saw she was nowhere in sight, but as soon as he turned his head back, he saw her, leaning against the fence to the door of his house. "Try again."_

_His breath hitched, already panting as he turned on his heal, making it to the pastures before a set of tiny, girlish hands grabbed his shoulders and threw him back, his back slamming into the wall. He tried to cry out for help, but she covered his mouth, her eyes darkening as she said, "Be quiet."_

_He whimpered, scared to death, as her hands moved over his body. "Please."_

_"Please, what?" She asked, staring at his throat as he swallowed._

_"Please let me go," He begged, frightened by her paranormally strong hold. _

_"I can't," She said. "Sorry."_

_"Please," He tried again, "I won't tell anyone, please. I don't want to die, Miss Pierce."_

_She leaned in, her breath ghosting on his neck, and she hissed, "Call me Katherine."_

_She made sure it hurt, grinding her teeth in far deeper than needed and tearing the artery in his neck open, letting him just bleed and tremble, his adrenaline and fear mounting higher and higher. Compelled to hush, he could only whimper and try to fight her off, not knowing why it was so useless. His blood was cascading down his neck, pooling into his shirt, by the time Katherine leaned in and sucked on the throbbing wound. _

_She threw him down and straddled him, pulling his head back by his hair and drawing more blood out of him. He cried silently, mostly from terror, his eyes drifting closed as he gave up the fight._

_She pulled back then, not interested if there was no struggle, and shoved her bleeding wrist down his throat. Just enough until his skin healed, not until he was strong. She forced his eyes on hers, holding his face still. "You will go home, and you will burn these clothes. This night never happened as far as your memory serves."_

_His eyes went blank, and he nodded. _

~oOo~

Of course he remembered all of this once he turned, but he never thought much on it. Never thought she used him as a toy in a game of chase and only let him live because he stopped fighting for his life. It all hit him now, thinking Katherine was leaning over him, and he was back to begging. "Don't hurt me, please."

"Damon, look at me," Elena whispered, leaning lower and tilting his face up with her fingertips. "It's Elena."

Recognition registered in his eyes finally, and the five people that were dead came back to his memory. "Elena?"

"Yeah, it's me," She whispered, kissing his cheek softly.

"Oh, Elena," He whimpered, moving into her arms when she pulled him close, lying his head in her lap as she shielded his body with her legs. "'Lena, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to."

"Shh." She kissed his temple, stroking his hair. "Easy, it's okay, Damon. It's okay."

"I didn't mean to, I'm sorry," He kept saying, hiding his face from view and jerking with soft sobs.

"Shh," She said again.

Stefan shot up then, and he nodded to Caroline when she gave him a "You okay?" look. He saw his brother, bawling in Elena's lap, and his heart sank. "Damon, I-"

"Don't even talk to him!" Elena hissed, and Damon didn't protest. "You scared the life out of him, bitch!"

Caroline had never heard Elena call anyone "Bitch" before, especially Stefan, her eyes widening in shock.

Damon sniffled, melting into Elena's arms and closing his eyes sadly, guilt taking over. They had families, and he just...took their life away.

"Can you stand?" She asked softly, her anger towards Stefan fading as she saw how fearful Damon was right now.

"I - I don't know.." He stuttered, wiping the blood off his lips and cowering closer to Elena.

"C'mon, we know how to cure you," She whispered. "Let's get you home."


	6. No Last Words

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
>OMG I am so sorry it took so long to get this up! Internet was down, life got in the way, blah, blah, blah. Ick..OKAY! So, on with the story!<strong>

* * *

><p>It took an hour to get Damon back to the house and into his room. He kept having to stop to catch his breath, or he would double over in pain and collapse. It killed Elena to see him like this, in such an intense amount of pain. She knew it would be over soon, and that was good. He wouldn't be in pain anymore, but she would never see him the same way again. She would be dead when he woke up, and that would probably hurt him deeply. Which is why now, while Bonnie is filling Elena in on what to expect in the living room while Stefan talks with Damon, she asks, "You have to promise not to tell him anything."<p>

"What?" Bonnie asked. "Elena, he has a right to know."

"But he will never be okay with this. He would never let me die to save him, he just wouldn't. He cares too much."

"'Lena, this is a mistake."

"What?"

"I don't think I can do this..."

No. Nonononono. She was not going to back out now. "Bonnie, you have to! Please."

"You know how I feel about Damon.." She sighed. "He's had over one hundred and fifty years to live, and you've had seventeen. Maybe it's his time to die."

"Don't even think that!" Elena hissed, beginning to get pissed again. God, these vampire heightened emotions were a pain in the ass. "It's not his time. It's mine. I decided I was going to die a long time ago. And if it's for him, then so be it! Please Bonnie."

"What about Jeremy?" She asked. "Hmm? What about me? And Stefan, and Caroline, and Alaric. Have you given this any thought whatsoever, or are you just love drunk?"

"I've talked to Alaric," She said, her eyes narrowing, "Jeremy will crash with him. That's how it will be. He'll probably adopt him, and even if not, he'll be eighteen in a year. Free as a bird. And he'll have you. Stefan and Caroline are already best friends, they can handle themselves. Do I need to explain things any further?"

She knew very well she was being a bitch, but right now she didn't care.

"Elena, please." Bonnie took Elena's hand, and saw some of her humanity flash in her eyes. "Please, think about this."

She sighed. "Bonnie. I've made my decision, it's not changing. I'm sorry."

Bonnie groaned and through her hands down. "Oh yeah? And what if I just don't do it? How about I leave? Then what? By the time you get another witch, he'll be dead."

If she were still human, she might've felt tears in her eyes at the harsh tone of Bonnie's words. But now, her vampiric visage showed, her canines digging into her lower lip until she snarled softly. "Don't. Threaten. Me."

"Or what?" Bonnie growled. "You'll kill me?"

"You're off vervain," She stated. "You are compellable. I can't make you do the spell...but I can make you stake me right in front of Jeremy."

Her eyes widened. "You wouldn't."

"Try me."

Elena's face softened when Bonnie sighed sadly, a look of confusion clouding her bambi brown eyes as Bonnie said, "Fine.."

She didn't question. "Can we do this?"

She nodded and pushed past Elena, walking upstairs quickly. Elena and she paused, hearing Damon's labored breathing. Elena heard the sheets brushing against itself, knowing Damon was clutching the sheets to hold back another scream. "It fucking hurts."

"I know," Stefan said, sighing softly. He hated seeing his brother like this; so vulnerable. Weak. He was so used to seeing him as the strong one. The Decision Maker. Now he was too in pain and absent minded from sleep deprivation to even comprehend a question. Elena proved this when she slipped in the room and wrapped her arms around Damon's shaking shoulders as she snuggled into his back. He barely acknowledged her, just squeezed her hand back when she took his shaking one in her own.

"I love you," She whispered softly, kissing the back of his neck.

Stefan noticed how it was no struggle for him to smile when Elena was there. "I love you, too."

"You know I'd do anything to save you, right?" She asked.

He just nodded feebly.

"You wouldn't be mad at me, would you?" She pushed, squeezing his hand again. "No matter what?"

She wouldn't change her mind, no matter his answer, but she wanted some sort of reassurance that he wouldn't hate her forever. She wanted to know he would be okay without her.

"It would take a lot for me to be mad at you," He whispered hoarsely. "I love you too much to be mad at you for saving me."

She sighed softly. You don't know what I'm planning..

"Ready?" Bonnie was standing at the end of the bed, a grim look on her face. She looked mad, for why Elena didn't remember, and Damon cringed back into his lovers arms.

"For what?" He asked, scared Bonnie might pull something. They weren't exactly friends, and he wasn't exactly in his right mind.

"Trust me," Elena whispered, sitting up slightly so Damon could lean back against her. "You'll be fine, I promise."

"Okay.." He whispered hoarsely, turning over and leaning into Elena. She stroked his hair, and looked at Bonnie.

Feeling how calm and trusting Damon had become, Elena whispered what was happening - she had been listening to Bonnie's rant downstairs. "Can you lie on your back?"

He sighed, but obliged, reluctant to leave Elena's embrace. She smiled softly at him and kissed his cheek, continuing to whisper, "It will feel like a slight pinch, and then where the pain is will just start to tingle."

He nodded weakly, still looking nervous, and when he took Elena's hand in his, she felt him shaking slightly. The last thing he wanted was to feel more pain; what if this was a rouse? What if she was just going to intensify his torment to the nth degree? He bit his lip.

"Hey," Elena murmured, leaning down and nuzzling her nose against his. "You're safe. I'm right here, okay?"

He nodded again, taking a few deep breaths and forcing himself to relax. He trusted Elena with every fiber of his being; she wouldn't let anyone hurt him. And he knew that for a fact.

And yes, he did feel a pinch in his nervous system, causing him to moan softly. His vision blurred slightly, the noises in the background fading as his back arched. The pain was fading fast, and his eyes fluttered closed after a moment. Unconsciousness crept up on him, as Bonnie knew it would, and he moaned out Elena's name back melting back into the sheets. His part was over.

Elena, however, was thankful he didn't appear to be able to hear her. She was writhing, curling in on herself in a tight fetal position or jerking as her spine convulsed. All the agony Damon had endured in weeks slammed into her in moments. Tears were streaming down her face, and she shoved away from Damon's stilled body, not wanting to wake or hurt him as she thrashed. She felt the cold wooden floor beneath her, and Stefan's hand as he tried to stop her spasms. Her screams were gut wrenching, and when they ceased, they were replaced with what would've came to Damon had no one found the cure. Her lungs collapsed, her mouth filling with her own blood as it flooded her throat. She gurgled, her hands reaching up to clutch Stefan's shirt. He leaned over her, whispering to her that she was okay through his tears. He loved her still, even if she hated him now, and he didn't want this. At all. But he had no choice; nothing he could do but calm her through her cries.

"St-Stefan," She choked.

"I'm here, Elena," He whispered.

"I-I'm s-sorry," She said. "F-f-for everyt-th-thing."

"It's okay, Elena," He said. "It's okay. Just relax."

"T-tell Jer I'm sorry..and Damon that I-" She cut off in a strangled cry, clinging to the younger Salvatore as he pulled her into his arms.

"Tell Damon what?" He knew her time was limited, and that she was hanging by a thread. If she wanted to tell Damon something, she needed to spit it out soon.

"I-I-I..tell him I.." She coughed, her brown eyes glazing over.

"Elena?" He whimpered, shaking Elena's form. "No. No, Elena, please."

He heard Bonnie's chant cut off, and she broke down in harsh sobs. "I'm so sorry."

"Elena!" Stefan cried again, shaking his head. "No, no, no."

There was a loud thud downstairs, and in seconds Jeremy was in the door, sliding next to Stefan as the vampire laid his sister on the wooden floor. He glared at Bonnie, tears in his eyes, his voice cracking when he cried, "You said you wouldn't do this!"

"S-she threatened me, Jeremy," She sobbed out. "There was no stopping her. She wasn't going to let Damon-"

Stefan was pulling away from Elena as Jeremy held back the urge to bawl, and wiped the tears off his cheeks as he struggled to keep his humanity turned on. He looked at his brother, and as soon as his name slipped from Bonnie's lips, his body jerked and he pulled in a rough gasp. He coughed, looking better than he had since John and Jenna's funeral, and Stefan was over him in a second. "Damon?"

"St-Stefan?" He croaked, clearing his throat. He looked tired, shaking his head.

"Hey, you're okay." Despite the grief and sorrow that was overwhelming him, the youngest Salvatore couldn't help but beam at the healthy look on Damon's face. "Oh, thank God."

Then he uttered the words that Stefan was hoping not to hear.

"Where...where's Elena?"

* * *

><p><strong>UBER depressing, I know, but stay with me. Next chapter will be another tear jerker.<strong>  
><strong>*sighs* Poor Damon.. :'( <strong>


	7. Made The Wrong Choice

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
>Just as a warning, I'm still sobbing after writing this. *sniffles*<strong>

* * *

><p>"Where's Elena?" Damon asked, propping himself up on his elbows. He remembered the weird feeling of being electrified, then falling into darkness. Elena was there, telling him what would happen, stroking his hair, and then she just jumped away. The bed shook when she did this, which is the only reason Damon knew that. It didn't make sense that she would just leave him now. Not when she knew he was going to be okay.<p>

"Damon.." Stefan started.

Damon's heart sped up as he took in his surroundings. Bonnie was sitting at the end of the bed, her shoulders shaking in sobs so hard they were silent. Jeremy was whimpering and muttering to himself, something that Damon interpreted as "No, no, please no." Stefan's eyes were tired and defeated, his shoulders slumped and his eyes foggy. The vampire sat up, trying to see what Jeremy was leaning over. "Stefan, where is Elena?"

"Damon, you have to understand.." He tried.

"Dammit Stefan!" He screamed, fear hitting him like a ton of bricks. "Where is she?"

His brother looked down, and Damon shot out of the bed, ignoring the dizziness that shook him. He shot over to Jeremy, and his heart stopped and fell to the floor. He was frozen in place, staring down at the last piece of the scene. The most gorgeous, sweet and perfect girl he had ever known was sprawled on the floor, her legs lying at a slightly weird angle, one arm extended as if she were grabbing something, the other resting over her stomach. Her lips, usually a soft shade of pink, now stained with her own blood and parted, her eyes open and half lidded as she stared blankly at the ceiling. Tear stains were on her cheeks, and the smell of blood let Damon know it had stopped flowing mere moments ago.

He tried to choke out her name, but couldn't, his knees giving out as he collapsed to the ground. His knees and wrists groaned at the sudden impact, but he felt nothing. Heard nothing. Saw nothing. All he could comprehend was that she was gone. She was lifeless on the floor of his room, and she was dead because of him. Elena was dead.

"Elena.." He managed at last, finally breaking down in tears as the shock was replaced by anguish. He had to crawl to her, feeling his shoulder bumping into something but not knowing what. Jeremy growled, but Damon didn't hear him. His fingertips brushed over Elena's cheek as his body throbbed with heart shattering sobs. He pulled her small, delicate, limp form into his arms and held her close, disbelieving. "No, Elena. Don't do this to me."

He understood her question now. _You know I'd do anything to save you, right? You wouldn't be mad at me, would you? No matter what?_

"'Lena, this is enough to make me mad," He whimpered, stroking her chocolate brown hair as she lay limp in his arms, her eyes focused on something else. He couldn't stand her blank stare, and pressed her eyes closed with a feather light touch of his fingertips. "This is enough to make me furious."

He wanted to hate her so badly right now it hurt. He wanted to shrug and say he didn't care. He wanted to be indifferent and turn his humanity off, kill his sorrows with booze and sorority girls. But he couldn't. He loved her past his humanity and past his walls and centuries of hatred and self-loathing. He loved her with his heart and soul, and he couldn't turn it off. It didn't stop, and he buried his face in her hair and sobbed hard.

"I'm sorry, Damon," Bonnie hissed, wiping her eyes for what felt like the millionth time.

He just glanced in her direction, his eyes filled with remorse.

Stefan whispered warningly, "Bonnie.."

But she didn't stop. "I shouldn't've.."

"_You_ did this?" He choked.

"I had to."

"Fuck that!" He screamed, grateful he had something to pin anger to instead of this hollow, empty feeling that was consuming him whole. "Why?"

"The blood of the soul mate is the only cure for a werewolf bite," She said robotically. "She did it to save you."

And just like that, his anger evaporated. "She did this for _me_?"

Bonnie nodded grimly.

"You should have fucking let me die!" He cried, hiding his face in Elena's hair again and whispering to himself, "It would've hurt less."

"No kidding," Jeremy snarled, but his words held no venom. Damon ignored him.

How could she do this? How could she look him dead in the eye and tell him everything would be okay when she knew this would happen? Did he mean that little to her or was she just oblivious to how he felt? She was his whole life, and she just threw her short lived human soul away for him. What was the point? She had so much to live for and he had nothing without her. Why would she cure him to just die and leave him completely and utterly alone?

"Please Elena, please," He whimpered repeatedly to the empty air, knowing she wouldn't hear him.

That thought sent what was left of his heart spiraling. He would never see her again. He would never hear her laugh or make her smile, he would never feel her lips on his again, he would never be able to hold her, and she would never tickle him again in the back of his car when he was scared. She wouldn't hold him and tell him things were okay when they weren't, and she would never admit that she loved him more than anything again. Never again would they just sit in the shower and talk about nothing, never again would she touch and kiss him until he was shivering and begging for her not to stop.

She would never save him again.

Bonnie ushered Jeremy out of the room, finally getting him to his feet. He was weak and trembling, but Bonnie's embrace was somewhat comforting. Stefan stayed, just watching Damon rock back and forth slowly, comfortable in the morbid silence. He didn't leave until Bonnie called him, and he had to tell Caroline she was too late for goodbyes. She cried in his arms.

Damon eventually felt Elena's body begin to cool, her skin becoming more pale and ashen. He stood on legs that felt as stable as loose guitar strings, and laid her form down in his bed. He sluggishly lay next to her, pulling her into his chest. "Elena..why?"

His tears didn't cease.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh, there are so many ways I could throw this story! So many twists I have in mind..<strong>  
><strong>Or, I could make all of you VERY mad at call this done. Whatcha think? ;)<strong>  
><strong>*evil giggle* <strong>


	8. God Mumbo Jumbo

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
>Haha, scared some of you guys. I could never leave you there! Not when this idea is swarming my head and completely taking over my life! lol<br>****So, you're right, I'm not evil enough to leave you there...  
>But... ;] <strong>

* * *

><p>Bonnie sat in the living room with Stefan, Caroline and Jeremy. Jeremy lay on the couch, his head rested in Bonnie's lap. His eyes were closed, and that relieved her somewhat. She didn't like seeing the pain and fear in his eyes. Bonnie understood that; his parents died, he'd lost two girlfriends, Jenna was sacrificed for Klaus's gain, and John gave over his soul so Elena would remain human. That went well. She shook her head at the thought, was that her fault? Did she preform the spell wrong? But even if she did, Damon would probably be dead, and how would Elena have reacted if she were human? Oblivious to her hearts true need? Or hurt that she lost a friend and her boyfriend lost his older brother? Bonnie didn't know. Didn't want to know.<p>

Caroline could not stop sobbing into Stefan's shirt, whimpering over and over how this can't really be happening. Stefan was petting her hair, worried about her. Bonnie could see he was shutting down, and felt bad for him too. Elena was far from sweet and gentle when she was a vampire, and the witch knew Stefan got a lot of her heat. It had to hurt watching the girl you loved throw that feeling back in your face.

Then again, wasn't she doing that to Damon?

She huffed, stroking Jeremy's soft brown hair with her fingertips. He was crestfallen, and felt alone. And honestly, no one could blame him; he'd lost everything and his sister basically shrugged his pleas not to leave him off, and his girlfriend couldn't even stop her after she promised she would. Guilt was eating her alive.

"Stupid witch.." Caroline hissed.

Bonnie looked up, hurt clouding her eyes. "What?"

Caroline glanced up when Bonnie's voice quavered, and said quickly, "Oh, not you, Bonnie! I meant whoever came up with the soulmate sacrifice bullshit."

Stefan stroked Caroline's back as she continued, "I mean.. If your soulmate dies, what's the point of living? What's the point of going on and knowing that you will never feel the same love you felt again? Knowing your soul was torn to shreds years ago? Is it just some sick game that the witches came up with so they could kill two vampires with one stone? With help from the werewolves of course, but...Ugh!"

Bonnie nodded. "I know what you mean.."

"I can't believe she's really gone," Caroline whispered. "If Damon had known this would happen, do you think he would've gave her his blood in the first place? It just seems like the first way of death would've been so more...peaceful."

Stefan had filled Caroline in on the whole thing, per her request, and he shook his head. "No. He wouldn't have. Because if not, he'd probably be with her right now..wherever."

Caroline felt tears sting in her eyes again, and buried her face in Stefan's chest once more.

For some reason, Bonnie flashed back to when she came in on vampire Elena the first time. Lying there, playing with Damon's hand like it was the most interesting thing in the world, snarling at Stefan, kicking Jeremy out. The only one she was relatively nice to - less Damon, of course - was Bonnie. Handed her the necklace gently, her eyes big and human when she said please.

God, she wanted Elena to be human so badly! She wouldn't killed John if she knew it wouldn't work!

Wait..

"Wait," She said. "Stefan, John is dead, right?"

It seemed like a stupid question, but Stefan said, "Yes?"

"Remember! He found that spell that Elena and his life would be bound?"

Still not comprehending this, Stefan said, "Right.."

"Shit," Jeremy whispered, and Bonnie paused and looked at him questioningly. "I never gave her his letter.."

She gave him a sad look and kissed his temple, before her hope shot to the surface again. "But Elena has technachly been dead all this time. Because's vampire's are the living dead. And since John didn't come back to life-"

"The spell could still be active!" Stefan said, the same hope shining in his eyes that Bonnie's held. He carefully pushed Caroline off of him, and shot upstairs. "Damon!"

~oOo~

It kind of felt like what Alice felt when she fell down the rabbit hole; a yoyo effect. Being pulled up and down as a vortex of junk or beauty spiraled around her. There was either fire and muck, swirling around in a river of broken dreams, or the spinning colors of electric blues and greens and purples. The colors seemed to go one forever, and at the very end of it she could see something. Her father. John.

"Dad?" She whispered, not sure why she called him that.

"Elena.." He whispered softly, smiling weakly.

She noticed how other faces shot behind him; Jenna, Vicki, Anna, Rose, Isobel...Miranda and Grayson.

Tears stung her eyes, watching. She tried to tilt her body to go to them, but she felt something physical-which was odd for this dimension. John, in full body now like Elena, was gripping her forearms, holding her in place. "You can't stay here."

"What?" She asked, confused.

"You weren't meant to die," He said. "I gave myself for you; we can't both be here."

"John," She pleaded. "I want to go with you. Jenna's there. Jenna, and Isobel and...Mom and Dad, their all there!"

"I'd have to go back," He admitted. "Look back, Elena, what are you leaving behind?"

She struggled, but he turned her around, forcing her to look through the filth, the polar opposite of where she wanted to be. There was chaos and constant hurt back where she was, someone always leaving her. But then, some of the dirt faded, and she saw Stefan holding Caroline, Bonnie with Jeremy's head in her lap, Damon holding...her body.

"What happened?" She asked.

"You left."

"Damon looks so.." She stopped, watching as the big, bad vampire convulsed in agony, his face covered in tears as he clutched Elena to his chest, muttering _Please no_ and _Why?_ repeatedly. It was devastating.

"He needs you, Elena," John whispered. "They all need you."

"But I.." She cut off again; she had no fight. She didn't even want to look back at Miranda and Grayson and Jenna and Isobel. She wanted to go to Damon and Stefan, and Caroline and Bonnie and Jeremy. She wanted to go home.

"Go," He said. "And don't forget I love you. We all do."

She nodded, her voice cracking as she whispered, "I love you too."

And with that, she shot down into the murky under depths. Home.

~oOo~

Damon hid his face for a moment in Elena's hair as Stefan bolted up the stairs, trying to regain some composure. But when he smelled Elena's sweet, peaches and cream shampoo, he knew it was hopeless. And he looked up at his brother, not registering the look of glee on his face, his tears falling harder. "What, Stefan?"

"Damon, Bonnie just figured something out!" He said.

Just as Damon was about to fall back into the sheets and stroke Elena's hair, she gasped hard, coughing and covering her mouth.

His eyes widened. "'Lena?"

* * *

><p><strong>Not evil enough to end it, but evil enough to leave you there for a while! Hahaha.<strong>  
><strong>Let me know if you want to read more! :] <strong>


	9. Will Always Be Stefan

**DISCLAIMER:  
>I do not own <em>The Vampire Diaries <em>or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:  
>Well..heh.. *hides*<br>That's all I have to say. lol. It's short, and not much of a wait, but I had to publish this and keep writing. heehee :P  
>Enjoy! <strong>

* * *

><p>Elena rubbed her eyes, lying back on the bed, her whole mind feeling blank. The last thing she remembered was watching Jenna die, and then it was a blur. She felt hands grip her shoulders and grumbled sleepily, squinting.<p>

"Damon?" She mumbled.

"Elena?" A smile was across his face, tears shining in his eyes as he pulled her into him, not even hearing her grunt. "God! 'Lena."

"John sacrificed himself for her," Stefan said, smiling as well. "It didn't work the first time, but now.."

"What?" Elena was confused.

Damon did something that made her freeze. He tilted her face up, holding her head in his hands, and planted his lips on hers in the sweetest, most adoring kiss she'd ever been given. "I love you so much. Don't ever do that to me again!"

"Do what?" She was frozen, eyes wide, staring at him like he just grew another head. "What was that for?"

Stefan's brows furrowed.

"What was what for?" Damon asked, his voice growing quieter at the lost look in her eyes.

"You kissed me," She stated. "Why would you do that?"

His eyes narrowed in confusion. "Because we..you told me you..I.."

Stefan took over, touching Elena's arm. "Elena, what do you remember?"

She groaned softly, her head spinning as she turned into Stefan. "Klaus..he killed Jenna, and then it's...blank.."

Damon's heart fell. "You don't remember anything after that?"

She shook her head no, tilting her head at Damon. Something seemed off with this whole situation, but she couldn't figure out what. She glanced at him over her shoulder. "Damon, are you okay?"

He said nothing, moving a little farther away from her. He looked like a kicked puppy; heart broken and lost.

Stefan was dumbstruck. "You don't remember anything?"

"No," She said. "Why? What am I supposed to know?"

"It was all a lie," Damon whispered to himself. "None of it was real."

"What wasn't real?" She asked, growing more and more confused by the second. "Damon, what's wrong?"

"Who do you love?" Stefan asked suddenly.

Her brows furrowed. "What?"

"No, I mean, who are you _in love_ with?" He asked. To his surprise he was mentally screaming _Say Damon, say Damon, say Damon!_

"You?" She said slowly, and Stefan saw his brothers eyes fill with tears again. "It's always been you."

Damon stood up at that, and Elena flinched at the sudden jerk of the bed. "Don't do anything kinky on my bed."

"Damon," Stefan said sadly.

"Forget it," Damon said, not making eye contact with his brother or Elena. "Just forget it. She did."

"What did I forget?" Elena asked again, annoyance brimming to the surface with her worry. What was happening?

"Doesn't matter," Damon said, and Elena noticed how he was biting his lip as he stared at the floor. "You wouldn't believe me anyway."

He left at a quick human pace, and Stefan sighed before looking at Elena. "Are you serious? You don't remember anything?"

She didn't answer. "What's wrong with him?"

"Damon?" Caroline said, and Damon froze at the door.

"She-" His voice caught, and he cleared his throat before looking at Jeremy again. "She's alive. You should go see her."

Jeremy's eyes widened at Damon's broken expression, the words not hitting home quite yet.

"Damon, what's wrong?" Caroline asked, standing up slowly.

"Nothing," He said. "Everything is back to exactly how it was."

Bonnie and Caroline shared a glance, and when they looked back at the door, Damon was gone.


	10. I Don't Want To Be Katherine

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own _The Vampire Diaries _or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:**

**Okay! So, this is a REALLY long chapter. lol. Hope it makes up for the last one, which was pretty short..tell me what you think! lol :P  
>Heehee, I hope all you people yelling at me for "breaking Damon's heart like that!" aren't mad at innocent little me. ;) heehee <strong>

* * *

><p>Elena pulled herself off the bed, and stumbled slightly. Stefan extended his arms, letting her fall into him so she didn't hit the floor. She smiled slightly, before her expression changed again. "Stefan, what happened to Damon? He looked so..."<p>

"Elena?"

She cut off as Jeremy came in the room, a smile spreading across his lips. He moved over to her, enveloping her in a tight hug. She groaned softly at the impact, but hugged him back. She still felt lost. It's like she died, or something.

_You left_, John's voice echoed.

She was a walking question mark right now.

"God, Elena," Jeremy hissed out, finally putting her down and looking at her; his eyes were rimmed with tears. "I love you, sis."

"I love you, too, Jer." She looked at Stefan to ask yet again what was going on, when Caroline squeaked and hugged her. She let out another grunt as the air was squished out of her, and soon Bonnie was there hugging the rest of her oxygen out. "G-guys!"

They ignored her for a minute, screeching, "Elena, Elena, Elena!" and "God, we missed you!"

"Can't breathe, guys, please," She croaked, and they finally let up. Laughter was contagious, so she smiled softly as she clutched her ribs. "Thanks."

"Don't ever do that again!" Caroline said. "You scared us to near death."

?

"Do..?"

"She doesn't remember anything, guys," Stefan whispered.

"Huh?" Caroline chirped.

"What?" Bonnie asked.

"What don't I remember?" Elena asked again, exasperated.

They weren't listening. "How can she not remember?"

"She-oh, crap. She was dead, which means the spell made her memory skip over the afterlife part of it."

Dead? Spell? Afterlife? What in hell?

Elena blinked. "Excuse me?"

"So she doesn't remember anything that happened?" Caroline asked. "What about Damon?"

Before Stefan could reply, she gasped. "Omigod, Damon! That's why he looked so..crushed."

"Hello!" Elena raised her voice, finally getting someone's attention. Her cheeks flushed at having to screech, but she then said, "I'm sorry, but can someone please explain what I'm supposed to know?"

Jeremy squeezed her shoulders and sighed, letting her know they were listening, she just had to wait a minute.

"What do you mean he looked crushed?" Stefan asked. "Where is he?"

"He left," Caroline said quietly, and Stefan suddenly looked fearful.

"No, no, no," He hissed. "Elena, I'll be right back, I promise. Bonnie, Caroline, please, explain."

She almost said something, but Stefan was gone, leaving nothing but a brief breeze in his wake.

"Okay, Elena," Jeremy started. "Maybe you should sit down."

~oOo~

Damon sat, leaning against the tree where his energy just drained him. His knees were pulled up to his chest, his forehead resting on his forearms as he tried to bite back sobs. It was all so bittersweet; she was alive and that's what he wanted. But he wanted her to remember him.

She didn't remember. None of it was even real in her mind! She didn't know he got bit by Tyler, she didn't know about his confession, she didn't know about making him trust her with everything he had and then yank the rug out from under him. She didn't even know her words are what sent him running, because she didn't remember how he felt.

He felt like he was, emotionally and physically, falling apart. And it was all too pretty outside; sun shining, birds chirping, the clouds forming creatures and objects that little kids were surely pointing out somewhere in the town. He scowled at the sky, sighing heavily.

"I guess you just meant that little," He growled to himself, hiding his face again.

~oOo~

Elena blinked. "You're kidding right? You're making some kind of joke."

Jeremy and Caroline shook their heads, and Elena sighed. She was sitting at the head of Damon's bed, clutching the blood/tear/sweat stained pillow to her chest. She hid her face in it, up to just below her eyes, and breathed him in. According to her lunatic friends, she had become a vampire, and pledged her love to Damon. What the hell? That's the farthest thing from the truth she'd ever heard!

Then again...

"Okay, so, why can't I remember any of this?" She asked, not sure why Damon's scent was calming her so.

"You were dead, sort of," Bonnie said. "Since you were dead, the spell didn't comprehend anything."

"So I'm a liar in the after life?"

"You love him," Caroline said. "You love him with everything you've got! You might've been a vampire, but you sure weren't stupid. You were aware of your every move, and you were gonna give up your whole life to save his. You are his literal soulmate, 'Lena!"

'Lena..why did she want to hear Damon call her that?

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"The cure for a werewolf bite," Bonnie started, "is the blood of the soulmate. As Caroline said, it's the witches trying to get rid of two of the walking dead. And we know you and he are 'soulmates' because when Stefan and I went to the Witch Burial Ground, Emily told me that the soul mate would be the only one seen in the mirror. You were the only one anyone could see, Elena."

"But I don't..." She stopped. She was going to say she didn't love Damon, and that it would be impossible for her to be his soulmate, because she didn't feel anything. But what was the point of lying anymore? Stefan almost looked...disappointed when she said she loved him. And honestly, she did want to hold Damon-for some reason-when he wouldn't even look her in the eye. She hated how broken he looked, but...

"Mercy!" She shouted angrily. She was so confused.

_Mercy!_ Damon's laugh sounded in her head, and her brows furrowed. It was the strangest thing; she could feel his firm lower stomach between her legs, and pressure on her hands as they attacked his ribcage. His skin was soft beneath her fingertips, and when she didn't stop tickling him, he boomed, _Elena! Please!_

Her head must've tilted, because Jeremy said, "You okay, Miss RCA Dog?"

"Huh?" She asked, still caught up in the memory. Well, it wasn't a memory. It felt more like watching a dream replay in her minds eye. "Uh, yeah..why?"

"You look..kinda out there," He said with a slight grin.

"I'm just..." She was holding his arm, wincing at the red skin barely covering his pulsing veins. She felt a red hot fury building in her stomach, and her heart falling at the same time. She was so worried about him, and she was mad at Tyler for biting him in the first place. He sighed at the frightened look on her face, and said something. "...thinking."

She looked at the sheets, her eyes widening slightly. She could see Damon lying there, his shirt and jeans gone as she straddled his hips. Her jeans and bra covered her, and when he tried to unclip it, she put his hands down on the bed above his head. Don't move. His eye brows furrowed, and she noticed his eyes travel over her body before going back to her eyes. She smiled. Just let me take care of you, okay?

"Uh..." She blinked. "Where is Damon?"

~oOo~

"Damon, please," Stefan whispered, his shoulders slumping. He had been trying to explain the situation to his brother - how Elena hadn't remembered because she was undead at the time, and that still counted as dead - but he didn't even look at him. Stefan didn't even know if he could hear him. "Please, just say something? Anything."

"What do you want me to say, Stefan?" Damon asked, turning his head to look up at Stefan. Tears were staining his face, but by the blank gaze in his eyes - usually a fierce blue, now the dead, glazed over expression Stefan remembered from when his own father shot them both to death - let Stefan know his brother was shutting down. No, not turning his humanity off, just shutting down. His heart was crushed when Elena said it had always been Stefan, and his soul felt no reason to pursue.

Stefan sighed, leaning against the thick bark of the tree his brother was on, rubbing small circles on his back. "Anything. Talk to me."

"About what?" He asked again. "You want me to elaborate that I wish this never happened? That she never turned and told me she loved me? That John died and sacrificed himself and she was making out with you this whole time? Or maybe that I died and wasn't stupid enough to tell anyone about my little problem? What the hell makes you think I want to talk?"

"Damon, she loves you," He said. "She just...doesn't remember, yet."

"She doesn't," He said, and it's what he believed. "She never did. It's always you."

"Damon, that's not true.." Stefan sighed. "She's loved you for a long time, I just..wouldn't let her confront it."

He just sighed, hiding his face again.

Stefan was on suicide watch, Damon knew it.

Rightfully so.


	11. Control Freak On Crack

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own _The Vampire Diaries _or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:**

**OOOOOOOOKay...I am SO not loving this new FF thing...maybe I'm just slow, but it took me about ten minutes to find where I was going...bleh. I hate complications...  
>SO! Enough with me complaining. Sorry I vanished! Back to <em>la storia<em>! (*the story-I'm a dork, I know.) **

* * *

><p>Stefan was about to attempt to pry more words out of his brother when his phone beeped. Damon flinched, but said nothing. He just sighed and watched Stefan open the phone.<p>

_where r u?_

Caroline.

_with Damon. Hows Elena?_

"Who is it?" Damon asked robotically, secretly hoping it was Elena.

"It's Caroline."

He shrugged, sighing in disappointment as his brother's phone went off again.

_havin a freaking panic attack..._

His brows furrowed.

_What?_

_shes worried bout Damon. he just ran out and she remembered...something, shes not letting on. any chance of u getting him back here?_

Stefan knew for a fact Damon wasn't going to believe she remembered anything. Especially since her comeback line when she turned was "I remember!" and he thought it was all a lie now. Inside, Stefan smirked, while on the outside he gasped. "Oh, God."

"What destruction awaits you, brother?" Damon asked blankly.

"Elena," He said, shooting to his feet.

Damon looked up then, seeing the panic clearly placed on Stefan's face. "What about Elena?"

He didn't have an idea of what could've happened, so he just said, "Caroline says she's locked herself in your bedroom."

"Wow, that's not like Elena throwing a fit at all," He said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"No, Damon, you don't get it," Stefan said, his words filled with fake-terror that easily could pass as reality. "She has a knife, Damon."

His brother shot to his feet again, growling. "Don't fuck with me, Stefan."

"I'm serious!" He shouted. When Damon hesitated, Stefan groaned. "You know what? I don't have time to 'fuck' with you right now. _My girlfriend_ needs me."

He took off, knowing Damon wouldn't sit there.

"Your girlfriend?" Damon hissed to the stirred air Stefan left in his wake. It couldn't have been an hour ago Elena was killing herself for Damon. It couldn't have been ten minutes ago Stefan was telling Damon that Elena loved Damon! And now, suddenly, _"my girlfriend"_ falls out of his mouth? Oh, hell no, Stefan didn't get to get her back that easily.

And Elena had the nerve to kill herself _again_?

"Fucking lunatics," Damon snarled, and then the tree he leaned against mere moments ago was left alone with the ruffled wind.

~oOo~

"Where the hell have you been?" Caroline hissed as Stefan appeared on the front porch. "A 'sure' or 'hell no' response sure would've been nice!"

Why did Stefan find her screeching so cute right now?

"He's coming," Stefan said. "Is Elena still in Damon's room?"

"Sniffing the pillow like a complete stoner and huffing and puffing like the Big Bad Wolf's pet kitten every ten minutes? Uh, yeah, she is."

Stefan snorted. "Good. Close his door and lock it. Damon's gonna be here any second."

"What do you mean lock it?" She hissed. "Is he murderous all of a sudden?"

"No, he thinks Elena is suicidal. Just do it!"

"Ooh, scheming Salvatore," She purred. "That's kinda hot."

Stefan blushed as she shot upstairs.

~oOo~

Elena jumped as the door slammed shut. "Caroline?"

The vampire held a finger to her lips, silencing Elena. After a moment, she mouthed, "Damon's coming."

Not sure why that excited Elena, she flung her legs off the side of the bed, slamming her ankle into the nightstand next to Damon's bed. She hissed, glaring at the blood that had begun to drip down her heal. "Dammit."

"Shh!" Caroline hissed, her ear pressed to the door.

Bonnie mouthed, "You okay?"

Elena nodded, sitting up. She had no time to worry about her heal bleeding; Damon was coming. She needed to talk to him. Now.

"Bon, Jer, with me," Caroline said. "Elena, stay here."

Elena opened her mouth to speak, but Jeremy said, "Don't even bother, she's crazed."

"I'm on crack, I know, come on!" She hissed. "We don't have time!"

Jeremy laughed, and Bonnie and he went out with Caroline.

Elena sighed, falling back on the bed in wait.

~oOo~

Not in the mood to have a talk through the door about what a fucking idiot she was being, Damon hesitated at the front door, hand lingering over the doorknob. His eyes narrowed, listening in on whatever conversation might be happening.

"You are insane," Bonnie said. "Do you realize what he's going to do to you?"

"If he gets Elena back, do you honestly think he's gonna worry about killing Stefan?" Caroline asked.

"Not. My. Point."

He rolled his eyes, wincing as the scent of Elena's blood hit his nose.

"Jeez," Elena hissed upstairs.

Damon backed away from the door, walking around the house to where his window was. Elena was pacing in front of it, stumbling slightly and glaring at her right foot. Damon found the movement way too cute, and bit his lip to the point of bleeding the wipe the smile that crossed his face. It healed quickly and he shot silently into the tree branch, leveled with the window. He waited until she was out of the way, before shooting through the opening. By the time Elena registered the sound, he was standing by the closed door.

"Damon?" It was a whisper, and she beamed. She was scared to death something had happened, not sure why she thought he'd be hurt. Unable to stop herself, she ran over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. He barely flinched. "God, I was so worried about you."

His hands shook as he forced himself to keep his arms hanging and not hug her back. He couldn't take the pain of a friend hug right now.

Elena pulled away awkwardly, letting her hands slide down to his. "D-Damon.."

He pulled a hand away from hers, pressing a finger to her lips. "We need to talk."


	12. You're My Friend

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own _The Vampire Diaries _or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:**

**My updates are coming slower, aren't they? Must remedy this effective immediately...  
>Even if I do like keeping y'all in suspense! ;) heeheehee<br>**_(sorry, it's kinda short, Fable is not cooperating..lol) _

* * *

><p>Damon huffed, shaking his head. "I'm gonna kill him.."<p>

Of all the things Elena was expecting Damon to say, that was not it. "Uh..Who?"

"Stefan, the subject of your fantasies.."

Against her will, she flushed. Stefan maybe the subject of her _affections_, but her fantasies were charted territories, and those had _Damon Salvatore_ written all over them. She cleared her throat. "Right.."

Why did she have to be so embarrassed about this? Whatever bug had infected her mind while she was a vampire sure would be helpful now. The courage, not the I'm-a-bitch-and-going-to-kill-everyone-whose-name-is-not-Damon-Salvatore. She wanted to just pull a Katherine and blurt, "I'm in love with you!"

But that wasn't Elena..

"Speaking of fantasies," He said, "what the fuck, Elena?"

The anger and hurt in his eyes and his tone made Elena take a step back. "What, Damon?"

"You made me trust you," He growled softly. "You made me trust you enough to fall in love with you. You convinced me you were in love with me! And you say you're not Katherine, it is un-freaking-believable."

"D-Damon what are you talking about?" She asked, her voice trembling slightly. He had taken a step forward, her breasts brushing against his upper stomach as he pressed against her. She swallowed and took a step back, but he followed her.

His voice was hushed. "And now you're going to act all sweet and innocent and fucking stupid. You know what? If you wanted to just fuck me, you should've switched places with Katherine! It would've hurt one hell of a lot less because I expect that from her."

Fuck him? She went all the way with him? "Wait, Damon, I don't understand," She said, pressing her hands to his chest. The movement seemed to hurt him, because he winced. Her brows furrowed. "Do you think I remember?"

"Elena, the witch voodoo shit Stefan handed me is exactly that; shit." His finger was on her lips again. "If you keep it down, your overly theatrical friends won't know I'm here yet."

"Look, I don't understand it either, but I wouldn't do that to you." She looked into his wounded blue eyes, her Bambi-browns pleading for him to understand. "I care about you too much."

He almost melted at the look in her eyes, and he dared to let his fingers caress her cheek. He was surprised when she leaned into the touch and closed her eyes, and he kissed her forehead softly. "What do you mean you care about me?"

She opened her eyes at the whisper, his warm breath ghosting over her eyelids. "I have very deep feelings toward you."

It might've been seen as a desperate move, but he wrapped his arm around her waist and shot to the bed at a vampire speed, his forehead pressed against hers. Her legs wrapped around his waist on their own, and he heard her intake of breath as her eyes widened. "Damon.."

"Tell me how deep," He said, his lips brushing hers as he spoke. He was forcing himself not to kiss her right now; he had to hear her answer. He had to see if he was making a mistake with trusting her again.

God, he hated how quickly he trusted her. She could rip his heart out and hand it to him again and not even realize it. He bit his lip, her eyelashes brushing against his closed eyelids and causing him to shiver. Her breathing, and blinking for that matter, were erratic, and Damon would like to think it's because of their position.

"D-D-Damon, I.." She breathed out, moving her hands from his chest to his shoulders, feeling his body tremble under her touch.

"Please," He cut her off, and Elena flushed terribly hard when his breath caressing her mouth made her moan. "Don't lie to me."

How in the hell am I going to lie to you when I can't even tell you my last name? Elena thought. Hell, first name!

"You're my friend," She said. "You've always been my friend."

He sighed, but when he tried to pull away he felt her hands moving again; cupping the back of his neck and pulling him back down as her fingers tangled in his hair. She kissed him, and he gasped. It took him a minute to respond to the kiss, shocked she'd actually done it, but once he did, Elena nor he had shared such a sweet kiss; even with the desperation tinting it.

When she finally broke it, he gasped for air and swallowed hard, her hands slipping to the nape of his neck. "But you...always had something I wanted to...experiment with."

The kiss still had his head reeling, but confusion glazed with the hurt in his eyes. "Experiment?"

"No." She sighed. That came out wrong. "I know you have another side to you. One that I think I got to see when I was...dead." She traced his lips with her fingertip. "I want to see it again, Damon. I want to see _you_."

"Elena, I.." He almost bit his lip, but he didn't want her to stop teasing him. "I'm scared to lose you again."

"I'm sorry," She whispered.

"For?" His brows furrowed.

"Forgetting," She said. "I want to remember."

He swallowed again. "Maybe you will."

She thought he looked younger like this - like his trust and humanity made him really look in his early twenties. She'd never seen Damon look so stress-free. It was uplifting, in a way.

"Elena," He whispered. He paused a moment, and closed his eyes before breathing out shakily, "I love you."

"I love you, too," She said softly, and when he looked down at her again that trust was there. It was so unnerving that he trusted her like this, so quickly.

She wanted to remember.

She desperately wanted to remember.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, I don't want to end this just yet, so I'm adding a few more chapters..Hopefully Fable cooperates and I can continue this story for a while!<strong>  
><strong>Ya know, if you guys want. heehee :P <strong>

**OH! And if any of you have reviewed this story (*hug!*) and have not received a PM reply, FF doesn't seem to like me all of a sudden because all my messaged disappeared with the upgrade, and they don't seem to be sending out...ugh..**  
><strong>So! Thank you for reviewing! It means a lot to me! :D <strong>


	13. Little Miss Katherine

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own _The Vampire Diaries _or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:**

**Ooooh, an idea I've had! haha. Thank you, Fable!**  
><strong>OMG I broke 100 reviews! Eek! Love you guys! Thank you so much!<strong>  
><strong>Okay, on with the story!<br>This is short, but I'm leaving you with a cliff hanger...had to! It's my thing.. lol  
>New chapter will be up, ASAP. <strong>

* * *

><p>"You are insane," Bonnie hissed once Stefan explained what he had done to get Damon back to the house. "Do you realize what he's gonna do to you?"<p>

"If he gets Elena back, do you really think he's gonna worry about killing Stefan?" Caroline retorted before Stefan could say anything.

"Not. My. Point," Bonnie growled.

"But seriously, do you think that will be the first thing on his agenda?" She lifted a blonde brow, and Stefan felt a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "I think Elena's jeans be introduced to the floor will be his new goal."

Jeremy gagged, Stefan snorted.

Caroline heard a scruff upstairs. "Shh!"

"What?" Bonnie asked.

"He's here."

"What do you mean he's here?" Stefan asked, glancing out the front window.

"He's with Elena," She whispered, and after a moment she scoffed. "Overly theatrical?"

"If he's been with her this long you don't have to listen," Stefan said. "He's not gonna kill her."

"And we'll know if she has any good sense if he storms out of here in another vampire-tissy." Bonnie rolled her eyes.

"Hey!" Caroline said before Stefan could defend his brother. "He got his heart unintentionally ripped out by the girl he loves most in this world. He had every right to run."

"When did you join the Damon Salvatore fan club?" Jeremy asked, his brows furrowing.

"You do remember he's the reason you're a vampire now, right?" Bonnie hissed, crossing her arms. "And he tried to stake you ten minutes later?"

"One, that was Katherine, thank you very much, and two, I killed someone!" Her wild hand gestures made Stefan smile again. "He thought it would be safer. So it's not like he was just being spiteful...he felt sorry for me."

"He doesn't feel sorry for anyone!" Bonnie persisted. "He killed Jeremy."

"He was in a bad mood."

_Understatement of the century_, Stefan thought with a small chuckle.

Bonnie huffed and stopped, figuring out Caroline wasn't going to let up. She fell down on the couch and sighed. "What are they doing?"

"Hush hush conversation on the bed," Caroline said. "Sappily adorable."

"You're enjoying listening to them now?" Stefan asked. "Ya know, as long as he doesn't call you overly theatrical?"

"Me?" Caroline gasped. "_I'm_ the overly theatrical one? She has a knife, Damon! Omigod!"

He laughed. "Well what should I have said?"

"I don't know, maybe...oh! Tyler came over, bit her because he thought she was a vampire and wanted to kill her, and now she's sniffing around and pounding her foot like some rapid labradoodle. She has rabies! That's not as dramatic as suicide by knife."

"Oh, yes, that's not over dramatic at all."

"Well you could have at least said she was going to hand herself over to Klaus again or something. Ooh, maybe to get Elijah back because she's in love with him now."

"With Elijah?" Jeremy asked.

"Yeah!" Caroline snorted. "He's got the hots for her, it's obvious."

"Well that will go over well with my brother..." Stefan trailed off, noticing how Bonnie was gawking at him. "Uh..yeah?"

"You just...were...joking..." She blinked. "And smiling."

"He's not so gloomy when his brother's happy," Caroline stated, patting her hand against his chest. Her french manicure caught Stefan's eye for a moment when she tapped the end of her middle finger against him before pulling away. "And with Katherine gone, he's got no one bitching at him now."

_Not exactly,_ he thought, his eyes traveling down Caroline's form for a moment. She didn't notice.

But Bonnie did. "Where is Katherine, anyhow?"

"Still in Alaric's apartment," Stefan said.

"Jeez," Jeremy sighed.

"Yeah. She'll be there until Klaus tells her to leave."

"So," Caroline said, "Miss Katherine Pierce is-"

Before Caroline could finish, the front door swung open. Her hips swung from left to right as she leaned there for a moment, her curls blown behind her shoulders and her pink lips curled in a smirk. Her hand was resting on her hip, but she dropped it as she stepped over the barrier of the front door without Elena's permission. She wasn't supposed to be able to get in...

"Hey, Stef," She purred, and Caroline went rigid.

"Katherine," Stefan breathed out.

She smirked again. "Miss me?"


	14. I Owed You One, Or Seven

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own _The Vampire Diaries _or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:**

**Okay, with all the drama and hell Damon and Elena have been going through, I need some fluff every now and again! heehee**

* * *

><p>Elena cleared her throat. "C-could we maybe go downstairs? I, um, I just want to.."<p>

"See how I behave with you in public?" Damon asked when Elena hesitated. "See if I pee on everyone's leg or if I'm really a good guy?"

She giggled. "I didn't think you were Tyler Lockwood."

He laughed, and sat up slowly. "You sure you want to go downstairs? I could..make you happy up here."

She blushed. "I'm sure you could."

_Great comeback, Elena,_ she thought.

"I could," He teased, resting back on his ankles and lying his hands on her thighs. "I could make you scream loud enough to get Caroline running, Bonnie setting me on fire, and Stefan committing suicide."

She laughed and slapped his chest when he leaned down. "Shut up!"

He leaned down, pushing her shirt up slightly. Her breath hitched, and then his lips brushed against the soft skin. She moaned, barely audible, but then his hand snaked up her shirt as he tickled her stomach. She screeched, trying to slap his hands away to no avail. "Damon!"

He laughed again, continuing his attack on her. His fingers slipped up a little farther, slipping to the soft skin of her underarms, and she nearly screamed. Her body arched towards his and curled in on itself as she buried her face in his chest, laughing extremely loud. "Damon! Damon, stop it!"

Downstairs, Katherine rolled her eyes.

Damon pulled back then, kissing Elena's hair as she collapsed back to the bed.

"I.." She swallowed, breathing heavily from laughing so hard. "I hate you."

"Aw," Damon purred, throwing his hand to his chest in fake pain. "I'm wounded, Elena."

She slapped his chest again. "Evil. You are evil."

"Yep." He chuckled. "Hey, it's just Karma coming back and getting you back."

She breathed in and out a few times before creasing her brow at him. "Karma?"

"Payback," He corrected, "is sweet."

"Payback, hmm?" She asked, pushing herself up slightly. "So, you're saying, when I was a vampire...I figured something out?"

_Shit_, He thought. _Said too much_. "Maybe. Maybe not."

"Hmm," She hummed with a smirk tugging at her lips. "Okay. Let's go downstairs."

"I'm screwed later, aren't I?" He asked.

She glanced down at Damon's zipper, shocking even herself, and said, "Maybe. Maybe not."

He lifted his brow in interest and amusement, following her out the bedroom door.

~oOo~

"What are you doing here?"

Katherine shrugged. "What a rude welcome, Stefan."

"How did you even get in?" Bonnie asked. "Elena owns the house now, no one is supposed to be able to get in."

"She died, remember? The bill is void." Katherine put her hands on her hips. "No, 'Hello, Katherine! So good to see you!' or 'Gee, thanks for the tip.' Starting to wish I was still in Alaric's apartment.."

"You're not alone, honey," Caroline growled.

"Really, Katherine," Stefan said, "why are you here? If Klaus let you go, why come here?"

There was a loud, high pitched squeal upstairs and Katherine rolled her brown eyes. "One, I am in desperate need of a shower. And two, I kind of own Damon, and yourself, one."

"You kind of own us a ton," Bonnie input.

Katherine ignored her. "So, what did I miss? Obviously Damon's alive and Elena is...thrilled." She snorted. "I always knew she had the hots for him."

"So you came here because you want to help us?" Stefan asked. "Why would you...?"

"Look. Klaus and Elijah have brothers, and Super-Bad isn't gonna be happy when he finds out Elena is alive. So, in order to gain some points with _Signor_ _Salvatore_, I brought this." She tossed Stefan a small vile of red liquid. "It's his blood. He told me it's the cure for a werewolf bite."

"Wrong!" Bonnie said smugly. "The cure for a werewolf bite is the blood of the soulmate. Elena is Damon's soulmate, she sacrificed herself, and now he's alive."

"Sure as hell doesn't sound like she sacrificed herself," Katherine growled.

"John sacrificed himself for her, meaning she got to come back as a human." Bonnie crossed her arms. "There is no other cure."

"Wrong!" Katherine mimicked in a high pitched squeak, and Bonnie scowled. "Hybrid Boy bit me, let me suffer for days. And just when I thought he was about to let me die, he fed me his blood. Tah-dah! Look who's alive now. Ya know, you witches use sacrifices in way too many spells, it's really tedious."

"So this is another way to cure a werewolf bite?" Stefan asked, looking at the vile.

"Didn't I just say that?" She asked.

"How did you get it?" Caroline asked.

"He gave it to me, told me to come and save the Salvatore. He didn't say come back either, so thanks to Damon's vervain, I'm free."

"Then why the hell are you in my house?" Damon snarled.

"Oh, joy, you're up!" Katherine said. She leaned her body to the side from the waist and picked up her hand, bending her fingers down twice as if she were waving to a small child. "Hi, Elena. Glad to see you're alive."

"Don't talk to her," Damon hissed.

"Oooh, touchy," Katherine said. "Dying set you off, hmm?"

Damon looked like he was about to attack her, but Elena's hand on his shoulder stopped him. "It's okay," She whispered. He sighed.

"Why does everyone suddenly hate me?" Katherine asked. "I brought you the cure for any supernatural toxin on the planet, and still I am the Wicked Witch Of The West."

"You're the reason Jenna is dead," Elena spat.

"I said I was sorry!" She protested. "Me or her. Who would you have picked if you were in my shoes?"

Elena didn't answer, and Damon wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her into him. He kissed her hair and Katherine yawned dramatically.

"Where is Klaus?" Stefan finally asked with so much interest it made Caroline bristle.

"Eh, somewhere." She shrugged. "But that's not the point. How about I tell you where he stashed the rest of the Originals bodies?"

"Why would we need that?" Elena hissed.

"Think, Gilbert Girl, for once in your tiny little life!" Katherine hit her forehead as she spoke. "If you revive the dead oldies, they will officially owe you a favor. And believe me, if Klaus finds out you're alive, you're gonna need all the favors you can get."


	15. Can We Trust You?

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own _The Vampire Diaries _or any of it's characters, I am simply playing with them!**

**AUTHOR NOTE:**

**Oy...It has taken me three days to finish this because I am SOOOO brilliant and I kept forgetting to click "Save" so...yeah. One more time!**

* * *

><p>Due to popular demand, Stefan and Katherine were the ones voted to going to the storage center. Damon didn't want to risk Elena getting hurt by being the only human there, Elena refused to let Jeremy go, Bonnie didn't <em>want<em> to go - thinking it was a stupid idea to add seven more originals to their plate - and Caroline...well, Caroline wanted to go with Stefan, but refused to mention that. And Katherine's death glare sent her back to the couch with her mouth shut. Stefan was disappointed, but didn't show it.

"So," Katherine started smugly, pushing the handle of her bag farther up her shoulder, "you're no better than Damon."

Stefan blinked. "Uh..what?"

She snorted. "Oh, please, Stef. He's been in love with his brother's girl since she was cheerleading, and you're now in heart with another cheerleader. It's scandalous."

"What cheerleader?" Stefan asked blankly. "What are you talking about, Katherine?"

She sighed. "Caroline.."

He flushed. "What about her?"

"Dear God, Stefan!" She huffed. "Don't play dumb. I saw that way you looked at her."

He flushed again, but said nothing.

"May I help you two?" A man asked, looking up from his magazine tiredly. He looked annoyed that someone had the nerve to come here.

Katherine leaned over the desk. "I need the key to storage unit 492."

"We don't have a unit 492. There is not enough room here for four hundred and ninety two units." He looked back at his paper, reading what Stefan assumed was the price tag of Lady Gaga's shoes, apparently through with the conversation.

"Excuse me," Katherine growled, waiting until he looked back up at her to hiss, "yes you do."

"No, we-" He cut off as Katherine compelled him with her eyes, saying, "You will give me the key, and forget we were ever here. Now."

He handed it over, and she snagged it away. She sauntered towards the hallway, and glanced over her shoulder. "Coming, Stefan?"

He cleared his throat and followed her, still not speaking.

"However, I don't think she's that into you," She continued. "Aren't her and Tyler an item? And even if not, she so still wants them to be."

"Why 492?" Stefan asked in a desperate attempt to change the subject. "How did you even know?"

"Fourteen ninety two is the, um, year I turned," She said softly. "He knows it would be a painful memory. He was probably going to bring it up when he brought me here."

"Why would he bring you here?" He asked, amazed by what he saw in her eyes; pain, remorse, humanity. Humanity. He saw her human side. He wanted to see more. He wanted to push her to the brink.

But why?

"Because he killed Elijah," She sighed. "Elijah wanted to be reunited with his family, which is why he and Klaus disappeared. You would know. You were there. But Klaus killed him with the white oak ash dagger - and don't tell me it's with you, because he has plenty more."

"Well hell," Stefan said as Katherine stopped walking.

"Yeah." She shook herself and smirked at him. "Don't wanna talk about Carrie-boo?"

He sighed.

"Yeah, you're smitten." She looked away and pushed the garage like door up, scowling at the odor that wafted out almost immediately. "Oh, how I love the smell of dust and decay in the morning."

He snorted in spite of himself, taking in the sight before him. Shelves lined the walls, twelve in total, each with a mahogany coffin lying on them. Seven of them were old, covered in dirt and cracking in some places, four of them lining the back wall looked new, but were coated in filth as if they had been here for a while, and the last one, and the second shelf of the left wall, was old and cracked, but clean.

"That's Elijah," Katherine said wistfully. "Has to be."

Stefan was still taking in the strange shelves, which appeared to just be a table with wheels placed in a strategical way to look like shelves in a morgue, when Katherine pulled out the cleanest coffin's tableshelf. "What are you doing?"

"Elijah is the only one who might be able to control these vampires," She hissed. "He might not go fucking crazy and kill us both."

When he just bit his lip, Katherine narrowed her eyes. "You gonna help me open this thing, or what?"

He sighed and put his hand on the opposite side of the casket, pushing it up. Katherine's hand brushed his, and he stumbled back when he got the lid off. Elijah lay there, eyes closed and hands overlain on his stomach, the end of the dagger sticking out of his chest. Katherine seemed to soften at the sight of his face, but then scowled and tore the blade out of him.

"It'll take a minute," She huffed when he didn't jerk awake like Stefan expected, and she leaned back against the wall.

"You know what I don't get?" Stefan asked, trying to shake the gloomy cloud that had settled over him.

"Pray tell," She sighed.

"Why a storage center?" He cocked his brow. "Why not in some cave? Or the bottom of the ocean? Or, ya know, in Europe where he originally lived? Oh, no, I'm gonna go dump them in Mystic Falls, Virginia. So convenient."

She laughed. "Good point."

He was about to say something else, but was cut off by a harsh gasp followed by ragged coughs. Katherine made no move to help, so neither did Stefan. Elijah shot out of the coffin once he sensed he was not alone and crouched in the corner, snarling wickedly. Katherine swallowed hard when she saw his visage showing, which he had never shown before.

"What are you doing here?" He hissed.

"Saving you," Stefan hissed.

"Why?" He growled, his eyes shooting to Katherine. "Why would you do such a thing?"

"We trust you," Katherine whispered. "We need your help."


End file.
